German School, circa 1600, A skull, a lizard, coins and an hourglass in a painted stone niche © 2002-2009 Bonhams 1793 Ltd

oil on canvas - 28.5 x 23.2cm (11 1/4 x 9 1/8in). Sold for £50,400

Note: The lizard depicted in the present painting relates, in reverse, to one which appears in a study of insects and reptiles by Georg Hoefnagel (1542-1601) now in the Liechtenstein collection (inventory number GR 399).

Bonhams. Old Master Paintings, 9 Dec 2009. New Bond Street www.bonhams.com