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Peeckelhaering - Pickelherring in the English tradition - is a stock character found in the comic theatre of most European countries.
With a mug or tankard in his left hand, the man looks back at the viewer, his head inclined and his expression a little woozy, a humorous evocation of the vice of intemperance. The dark make-up on the face indicates that the painter is depicting an actor in the role of Peeckelhaering, and the red and yellow of the costume had in fact since the 16th century been associated with the jester.
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