"Vanity is the excessive belief in one's own abilities or attractiveness to others. In Western art, vanity was often symbolized by a peacock, and in Biblical terms, by the Whore of Babylon. During the Renaissance, vanity was invariably represented as a naked woman, sometimes seated or reclining on a couch. She attends to her hair with comb and mirror. The mirror is sometimes held by a demon . Symbols of vanity include jewels, gold coins, a purse, and often by the figure of death himself."
