As a rule, Italian and French still lifes in the 17th century still tend to strictly objective description of actual phenomena. The Dutch were still in the tradition of “disguised symbols.”
The “fruit basket” of Baltazar van der Asta, for example, contains many symbols to show that he is concerned about what is happening around him.
The presence of defects and wormholes, butterflies, dragonflies and flies – is very unusual for still lifes. If you pretend that here apples symbolize victory over sin, and insects and lizards often associated with evil, then this ordinary plot – a lizard chewing apple, dropped out of the basket, turns into a scene of the struggle between good and evil.
Related Paintings 
Fruit Basket by Edouard Manet 
A boy with a basket of fruit by Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio 
Fruit Basket by Michelangelo Merisi and Caravaggio 
Flowers in a glass vase and fruit by Jan Davids de Hem 
Still Life with Flowers, Fruits, and Shells by Balthasar van der Ast 
Basket of Fruit by Caravaggio 
Nude woman with a basket of fruit by Georges Braque 
Flowers and fruits by Baltazar van der Ast
Fruit Basket by Edouard Manet A boy with a basket of fruit by Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio Fruit Basket by Michelangelo Merisi and Caravaggio Flowers in a glass vase and fruit by Jan Davids de Hem Still Life with Flowers, Fruits, and Shells by Balthasar van der Ast Basket of Fruit by Caravaggio Nude woman with a basket of fruit by Georges Braque Flowers and fruits by Baltazar van der Ast