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This painting is an early example of the forest floor still-life (or sottobosco) which Otto Marseus van Schrieck pioneered. It depicts aspic viper, sand lizard, tree frog, moths and fungi. The snake, emerging from the shadows of the undergrowth, is about to attack the frog. Its mouth is open, prepared to bite, and its wide eyes are fixed on its prey, which has its back turned, unaware of the imminent danger. The rest of the work is populated by a range of fungi, thistles and moths.
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