 The pose was uncommon in Dutch art, but Vermeer was considered an expert in Italian painting, in which the image was often used (especially those of Guido Reni [1575–1642], whose works were then owned in Holland).Wheelock believes the large book, which has a metal clasp, is a Bible, but the Metropolitan Museum of Art states on its website that the volume may be the Catholic Missale Romanum.The painting's iconography is not only Catholic, but some believe it is strongly influenced by Jesuit ideas.