Vermeer's Woman Holding a Balance

The painting shows a woman at a table. She has a balance in her right hand, and on the table in front of her are a piece of blue cloth, a gold chain, and open boxes. Her eyes are lowered and focus on the balance, waiting for it to come to rest. To the right of the woman hangs a painting of the Last Judgment. The woman is bathed in soft light from the window.

The woman appears to be locked into a private world of her own. This inner consciousness appears to give her peace, indicated by the expression on her face. Although there are several items of jewelry on the table, the balance is empty. This could be symbolic of weighing something more important than jewelry. This suggestion is amplified by the painting to her right. The Christ figure is above the woman's head, with the scene of weighing the souls on Judgment Day hidden. The woman as it were replaces this scene. Her illuminated face also suggests a holiness that brings deep inner peace. The concept of the Last Judgment does not bring her any fear. She is secure in her own inner being.

Vermeer uses a variety of symbolic images in his painting. The light, the balance, and the painting of the Last Judgment combine and balance in the being of the woman. The illumination of the room is soft, contributing to the sense of peace in the room. There is also a perfect symbolic balance in the painting itself, with the balance symbol at the center. The woman is waiting for the balance to stop, suggesting continuous movement in the painting. Movement is balanced with stillness, as the woman is standing still while she waits.

Everything in the painting combines to emphasize the woman's facial expression of peace and serenity. The hidden figure on the Last Judgment painting is replaced by the more peaceful figure of the woman in front of it. When looking at the painting, one is immediately infused with the peace of the woman, to which the entire scene contributes. In this, Johannes Vermeer achieves not only perfect physical balance, but emotional balance as well.