Gerard ter Borch to paint works in this genre. An example of Teniers's contribution to the genre is the composition Village doctor looking at a urine sample (1640s, Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium), which shows a man examining a urine flask for the purpose of medical diagnosis while an anxious peasant woman is looking on. Teniers also depicted physicians performing various operations such as foot and back operations. Still lifes Teniers is not generally known as a still life painter. Nevertheless, many of his interiors include elaborate still lifes, some of them painted by specialist still life painters, others painted by Teniers himself. The subject of the guardroom and all its trappings such as armor, colorful flags and banners, saddles, drums and pistols gave Teniers ample opportunity to showcase his capabilities as a still life painter. This can be seen in the Guardroom with the Deliverance of Saint Peter (c. 1645–47, Metropolitan Museum of Art). A few independent still life paintings have also been attributed to Teniers. One of the most accomplished ones of these is the Still-life with overturned jug (At Sotheby's on 5 December 2007, lot 5).The work is dated to the mid-1630s on stylistic grounds. This work seems to show the influence of the Dutch monochrome still life painters. In particular, its simplicity and studied informality and the use of subtle muted colours bring to mind the work of contemporary artists from Leiden and Haarlem. However, is not clear whether Teniers was in fact directly influenced by these artists, and if so how. No similar still life paintings are known in Antwerp at this early date. At the time Teniers created this still life painting, the principal influence on him was Adriaen Brouwer, who had returned from Haarlem to Antwerp around 1631-2. To date Brouwer is not known to have been active as a painter of still lifes. While Teniers's early work also reveals his knowledge of Dutch artists in Rotterdam such as Pieter de Bloot and the Saftleven brothers, none of these artists were still life painters. The still life may possibly reflect the influence of the important Dutch still life painter Jan Davidsz. de Heem, who had arrived in Antwerp in 1635, the year this picture was made. Collaborations Collaboration between artists specialized in distinctive genres was a defining feature of artistic practice in 17th-century Antwerp. Teniers was likewise a frequent collaborator with