Updated November 2026 · ranked by our popularity score (searches, visits and orders for each work) · 117 works by William Harnett in our catalogue
In short
Still Life: Writing Table (1877) is the William Harnett painting that draws the most eyes; the original belongs to the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia. After it, the eye goes to For Sunday's Dinner (1888) and Still Life with Pewter Candlestick and Clarinet (1886). Among the 117 works of William Harnett in our catalog, these 100 are the most famous, each a unique original presented with its year, its museum and the reason it endures.
To stand before William Michael Harnett’s Still Life: Writing Table is not merely to observe an arrangement of objects; it is to step into a moment suspended in time—a quiet drama played out on a dark, richly textured wooden surface. This masterful oil painting from 1877 transports us into the intimate sanctum of a scholar’s study or a prosperous gentleman's office. Harnett, the celebrated illusionist of everyday life, possesses an…
“For Sunday’s Dinner” exemplifies Harnett’s unparalleled skill as a trompe-l'œil painter—a technique that deliberately deceives the eye by presenting an image that appears to exist beyond its physical boundaries. Painted in 1888, this unsettling still life depicts a dead rooster hanging upside down from the ceiling by its feet against a dark, textured background resembling aged wood paneling. The composition is centered around the rooster, which dominates the frame with…
This highly detailed, realistic still life painting, executed in 1886, is rendered in the Trompe l'oeil style. The composition features a dense arrangement of objects resting upon a wooden table draped with a dark cloth. A single white candle sits within a pewter candlestick, serving as a focal point of light that casts soft highlights across the various items. The arrangement includes a clarinet, old books, scattered sheet music, and…
The painting After the Hunt by William Harnett presents a quiet, still moment of repose. Created in 1885, this work belongs to a quartet of canvases that explore the stillness of hunting paraphernalia and deceased game. The image captures a specific, frozen instant of the aftermath of a trek through the brush.
The oil on panel painting titled Still Life was executed by the artist William Harnett. This work is dated 1890. The composition focuses on themes of abundance and material beauty through a collection of various objects.
In "The Faithful Colt" by William Harnett, a meticulously rendered still life, the eye is immediately drawn to a central, heavy presence. A gun dominates the frame, positioned diagonally across the dark wooden surface. This sharp, slanted line cuts through the stillness of the composition. In the upper left corner, a bottle sits quietly, while a small piece of paper is affixed to the lower right corner with a single…
William Michael Harnett’s The Banker's Table invites us into an intimate glimpse of a bygone era—a world where commerce, scholarship, and the passage of time converged upon a single wooden surface. Unlike the lush bounty of fruit that characterized some of his earlier still lifes, this piece turns its meticulous gaze toward the manufactured artifacts of intellectual and financial life. It is a masterclass in elevating the mundane; Harnett does…
The Enigmatic Still Life William Michael Harnett’s “Still Life: Violin and Music,” often referred to as “Music Literature,” isn't merely a depiction of objects; it’s an invitation into a carefully constructed world of illusion. Painted in 1888, this oil on canvas transcends the boundaries of a traditional still life, becoming a masterclass in trompe-l’œil – a technique designed to deceive the eye and create the startling impression that what we…
Still Life with Portrait by Raphael is a work by William Harnett, executed in 1878. The artist, born in Clonakilty, Ireland, in 1848, became a significant figure in American realism through his specialized focus on the illusion of three-dimensional objects.
To stand before William Michael Harnett’s New York Daily News is not merely to observe an arrangement of objects; it is to step directly into the meticulously curated, quiet moments of late nineteenth-century urban life. This painting possesses an almost startling intimacy, drawing the viewer close enough to discern the texture of aged paper, the subtle sheen on a ceramic mug, and the varied patina of everyday detritus. Harnett elevates…
Still Life with Bric-a-Brac1878 · Fogg Art Museum
12
For Sunday's Dinner1888 · Art Institute of Chicago
13
Still Life1888 · Metropolitan Museum of Art
14
Still Life1875 · Reading Public Museum
15
Still Life: Ten-Cent Bill1879 · Philadelphia Museum of Art
16
Still Life with Flute, Vase and Roman Lamp1885 · Yale University Art Gallery
17
Alas, Poor Yorick1877 · Los Angeles County Museum of Art
18
Mortality and Immortality1876
19
The Meerschaum1886 · Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco
20
Still Life with the Toledo Blade1886 · Toledo Museum of Art
21
Still Life with Letter to Thomas B. Clarke1879 · Addison Gallery of American Art
22
Study of a Pipe and Other Objects1874 · Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco
23
Still-life with Flute and Times1877 · Minneapolis Institute of Art
24
Still LIfe with Pipe and Book1878
25
Still Life, Pipe and Mug1878
26
Still LIfe with Pipe1877
27
Still Life with Raisin Cake, Fruit and Wine1876 · Museum of Fine Arts
28
Still Life with Pipe and New York Herald1878
29
Peaches and Grapes1877
30
Still Life with Blue Tobacco Box1878
31
Still Life with Ginger Jar1876
32
Still Life with Apples, Grapes and Almonds1876
33
Munich Still Life1882 · Dallas Museum of Art
34
Job Lot Cheap1878
35
Still Life1877
36
Still Life with Cigar, Pipe, New York Herald and Wiine Glass1877
37
A Smoke Backstage1877
38
Solace1878
39
Still Life with Goblet, Fruit and Nuts1876
40
Still Life with Mug, Pipe and New York Herald1877
41
A Sprig of Plums1873
42
Still Life with Ink Bottle, Book and Letter (also known as Still Life with Universal Gazetteer)1878
43
Munchener Bote1881 · Yale University Art Gallery
44
STILL LIFE WITH PIPE AND MUG1880 · Cincinnati Art Museum
45
LOBSTER AND LE FIGARO1882 · Cincinnati Art Museum
46
Still Life with Violin1885 · Museum of Fine Arts
47
Trophy of the Hunt1885 · Carnegie Museum of Art
48
Still LIfe with Jug and Newspaper1881
49
Still Life: Le Mot d'Or1880
50
The Social Club1879
51
After the Hunt1883
52
New York Herald, July 11, 18801880
53
Still Life with Fruit and Vase1881
54
After the Hunt1884
55
His Mug and His Pipe1880
56
Still Life with Letter to Mr. Lask1879
57
To this Favor - A Thought from Shakespeare1879
58
Still Life with a Violin, Pewter Tankard and Sheet Music1883
59
Still Life with Fruit and Vase1881
60
Secretary's Table1879
61
Merganser1883
62
Still Life: Box of Havana Cigars1884
63
Still Life1884
64
Still Life1883
65
Plucked Clean1882 · National Gallery of Art
66
Momento Mori, To This Favour''''1879 · Cleveland Museum of Art
67
Still Life with Three Castles Tobacco1880 · Brooklyn Museum
68
Lobster and Pester Lloyd1882
69
Still Life with Inkwell, Book, Pipe and Stoneware Jug1880
70
Still Life with Fruit, Champagne Bottle and Newspaper1881
71
A Study Table1882
72
Still Life with Pipe, Mug and Newspaper1879
73
Materials for a Leisure Hour1879 · Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum
74
Still Life with Clarinet1883
75
Cigar Box, Pitcher and 'New York World'1880
76
Still Life with Decanter and Frankfurter Zeitung1881
77
Still Life with 'Le Figaro'1882
78
Still Life with Lobster, Fruit, Champagne and Newspaper1882
79
The Old Violin1886 · National Gallery of Art
80
Music1886
81
Still Life with Blue and White Pitcher, Tobacco Case and Pipe1888
82
The Old Cupboard Door1889
83
With the Staatszeitung1890
84
The Violin1886 · Amon Carter Museum of American Art
85
The Professor's Old Friends1891
86
Mr. Hulings' Rack Picture1888 · Museum of Fine Arts
87
Still LIfe with Copper Jug1888
88
Still Life with Violin1886 · New Britain Museum of American Art
89
The Golden Horseshoe1886
90
Still Life with Bust of Dante1883 · High Museum of Art
91
Munich Still Life1884
92
Still Life (also known as Copper tankard, bos, apples, wine bottles, ginger pot, cigar box and peeled orange)1884
93
Old Models1892 · Museum of Fine Arts
94
Still LIfe with Universal Gazetteer1878
95
Philadelphia Public Ledger, March 2, 18801880
96
Still Life with Pipe and Tobacco
97
The meerschaum pipe
98
Memento mori
99
A Mans-Talbe Reversed
100
Just dessertArt Institute of Chicago
The four subjects that come back most often in these originals, each with its finest example.
The 8 museums that hold the most of the paintings on this page.
| Museum | City | Works by William Harnett | Paintings from this list |
|---|---|---|---|
 Metropolitan Museum of Art |
New York | 5 | The Banker's Table, Still Life: Violin and Music (also known as Music Literature), New York Daily News |
 Museum of Fine Arts |
Boston | 4 | Still Life with Raisin Cake, Fruit and Wine, Still Life with Violin, Mr. Hulings' Rack Picture |
 Art Institute of Chicago |
Chicago | 3 | For Sunday's Dinner, For Sunday's Dinner, Just dessert |
 Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco |
San Francisco | 3 | After the Hunt, The Meerschaum, Study of a Pipe and Other Objects |
 National Gallery of Art |
Washington | 3 | Plucked Clean, The Old Violin |
 Philadelphia Museum of Art |
Philadelphia | 2 | Still Life: Writing Table, Still Life: Ten-Cent Bill |
 Yale University Art Gallery |
New Haven | 2 | Still Life with Flute, Vase and Roman Lamp, Munchener Bote |
 Cincinnati Art Museum |
Cincinnati | 2 | STILL LIFE WITH PIPE AND MUG, LOBSTER AND LE FIGARO |
Pick a decade to see the original that defines it.
To stand before William Michael Harnett’s Still Life: Writing Table is not merely to observe an arrangement of objects; it is to step into a moment suspended in time—a quiet drama played out on a dark, richly textured wooden surface. This masterful oil painting from 1877 transports us into the intimate sanctum of a scholar’s study or a prosperous gentleman's office. Harnett, the celebrated illusionist of everyday life, possesses an…
“For Sunday’s Dinner” exemplifies Harnett’s unparalleled skill as a trompe-l'œil painter—a technique that deliberately deceives the eye by presenting an image that appears to exist beyond its physical boundaries. Painted in 1888, this unsettling still life depicts a dead rooster hanging upside down from the ceiling by its feet against a dark, textured background resembling aged wood paneling. The composition is centered around the rooster, which dominates the frame with…
In "The Faithful Colt" by William Harnett, a meticulously rendered still life, the eye is immediately drawn to a central, heavy presence. A gun dominates the frame, positioned diagonally across the dark wooden surface. This sharp, slanted line cuts through the stillness of the composition. In the upper left corner, a bottle sits quietly, while a small piece of paper is affixed to the lower right corner with a single…
Still Life: Writing Table (1877), Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia. For Sunday's Dinner (1888) and Still Life with Pewter Candlestick and Clarinet (1886) come next.
29 years old: Still Life: Writing Table dates from 1877, and William Harnett was born in 1848.
Still Life: Writing Table, For Sunday's Dinner, Still Life with Pewter Candlestick and Clarinet, After the Hunt, Still Life, The Faithful Colt, The Banker's Table, Still Life: Violin and Music (also known as Music Literature), Still Life with Portrait by Raphael and New York Daily News. The ranking above gives each one's year and museum.
Our catalog holds 117 works by William Harnett, dated from 1873 to 1892.
Mostly in Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York), Museum of Fine Arts (Boston) and Art Institute of Chicago (Chicago). The museum table above lists them all.
In 1880s: 54 of the 100 works on this page were made then, For Sunday's Dinner among them.
On this page, the earliest is A Sprig of Plums (1873) and the latest Old Models (1892).
Life (31), Still life (16) and Books (10), across the 100 works on this page.
Oil On Canvas, for 13 of the 100 works on this page.
The Banker's Table, Still Life: Violin and Music (also known as Music Literature) and New York Daily News: the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York holds 4 of the works on this page.
