Interior with a Woman Washing her Hands

A lady is washing her hands with water from a silver water jug. She is in a chic brothel – the women in the background are occupied with a customer. Is the woman washing her hands after a customer leaves, or washing them in innocence, to indicate that the sins of the world are not her responsibility?

Along with Schalcken and Verkolje, Van der Neer represents the last generation of Dutch genre painters. They continued in the manner of the genre paintings of their predecessors, but placed more emphasis on refinement and elegance.