This painting of 'Fire' by Beuckelaer is from a set of four paintings of the four elements. In the background, the same scene from the Bible - showing Christ with Martha and Mary - is just visible.

Velázquez's Spanish kitchen is very different from Beuckelaer's Netherlandish one. In 'Fire', the room is crammed with huge joints of meat, and numerous birds being prepared for cooking. The intention may have been to illustrate God's generosity, but some Spanish audiences found such abundance inappropriate. Velázquez's kitchen is no such 'tavern of gluttony' but shows a handful of basic ingredients for a simple, Lenten meal.

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