A lady being propositioned by two gentlemen

It may be compared for example with Steen's An Interior with a Man offering an Oyster to a Woman in the National Gallery, London (NG 2559) ca.1660-5. In the 17th century, oysters (traditionally a symbol of lust) were thought to be an aphrodisiac and the discarded oyster shells scattered around the woman's chair may be an allusion to her occupation as a prostitute. Similarly, Steen often included clay pipes in his genre paintings as objects with erotic connotations as in The Interior of an Inn also in the National Gallery, London (NG 5637). Gerard Ter Borch (1617-1681) specialised, from the late 1640s onwards, in small panels featuring figures, selectively lit against dark backgrounds, talking, drinking and making music in elegant dress and was particularly skilled in recording the way light strikes shimmering and costly fabrics.

Although 509-1870 appears to emulate him in many ways, it is much less finely painted. Like Ter Borch's A Woman playing a Theorbo to Two Men (NG 864) in the National Gallery, London, 509-1870 is anecdotal in character, with two men present and the relationship between the figures is deliberately ambiguous. The viewer is invited to decide whether is just a happy domestic scene, or, possibly a scene taking place in brothel. Another comparable genre picture by Ter Borch is The Card Players (Johnny Van Haeften, London 2009), a subject which emphasises the idleness of the pastime, the stupidity or untrustworthiness of the participants or set the scene for an amorous dalliance between the sexes, in the case of the V&A picture, the ace of hearts symbolises romance.