Jacob Biltius

[2] Jacob Biltius was born in The Hague as the son of Bartholomeus Bilt and an unknown mother.

[2] Biltius was admitted in 1660 to the Confrerie Pictura, which was founded in 1656 by local painters, who were unsatisfied by The Hague Guild of St Luke.

[6] Jan Weenix and Melchior d'Hondecoeter also painted trompe l'oeil still lifes often representing game birds hanging in a niche or against a monochrome wall.

Biltius’ trompe l'oeil compositions show a very accurate and precise representation of nature.

As it was common in Dutch households of the time to have birds actually suspended in their homes, the illusionistic works of Biltius would likely have confounded the viewer thus achieving their desired effect.

Trompe l’oeil with quails, kingfisher, bird net and whistle
Trompe l’oeil of an arms rack, game and dog and other objects hanging on a wall
A partridge suspended from a nail, a starling, a trap and whistle in a stone niche