 During the 1640s, Kalf further developed the banketje into a novel form of sumptuous and ornate still life (known as "pronkstilleven"), depicting rich groupings of gold and silver vessels.Like other still lifes of this period, these paintings were usually expressing "vanitas" allegories..

Kalf's magnificent still life paintings vary little in their structure, and most of them actually feature the same objects.Usually, a damask cloth or tapestry is draped upon a table on which there is tableware, with gold and silver vessels, many of which have been identified as work of specific goldsmiths, such as Johannes Lutma.