In addition to apples-a favorite motif of Cezanne's-the ceramic jar and cup seen in this still life feature in numerous paintings by the artist. The wallpaper in the background appears in six works that he painted about 1877, when he rented an apartment at 67 rue de l'Ouest, Paris. Its pattern is echoed both by the shape of the white cloth on which the everyday items are arranged and by the painted floral decoration on the front of the wooden chest.