Dutch proverbs, as painted by Pieter Bruegel

Met het hoofd tegen de muur lopen 

In this excerpt, we can see a man seemingly running into a wall wearing only one shoe. Here Bruegel is depicting the age-old adage, to bang one's head against a wall, which we all know means trying to accomplish something that is hopeless.

Aan de ene voet een schoen, de ander blootvoets

Did you notice he is only wearing one shoe? This is a reference to the saying, one foot shod, the other bare. This basically means balance is everything.

Hij laat wereld op zijn duim draaien

Here we see a man seemingly levitating the globe in his hand. Actually, if you look closely, the man has the world spinning on his thumb. This could either be taken as, having every advantage or having the world in the palm of your hand. The latter seems more plausible, especially as the man is depicted with his palm upwards. What do you think? 

Voor God een baard van vlas maken

Here we can see a depiction of Christ with a priest stroking his white beard, at least that's what it looks like. What this scene depicts is the priest tying a flaxen beard to the face of Christ. Essentially, this means to use religion (in this case Christianity) to cover deceit.

We can find a similar sentiment in the story of the man and the wooden god by Aesop. In this story, a man worships a wooden idol and when the man's life fails to change, he strikes the idol, which breaks and spills coins onto the floor. 

Uit hetzelfde gat schijten 

If this picture looks like two guys going for a number two out of a window together to you, that's because that's exactly what it is. The saying they both crap through the same hole is meant to represent two people being inseparable. I guess that's just what best friends did in the 16th century. 

Op de wereld schijten 

As soon as you look at this picture, you see exactly what Bruegel was trying to portray here. This man is shitting on the world, an action that represents hatred towards everything.

De omgekeerde wereld

Did you notice that the world is turned upside down? If you have a look at the other pictures, all the globes have the cross facing upwards. This means that things are in disarray and disordered, kind of like this painting. 

De een scheert schapen, de ander varkens 

Here we have two guys. One of them shears a sheep while the other shears a pig. Essentially, this is meant to represent one person having all the advantages, while the other has none. It may also represent the advice, "shear them, don't skin them," meaning make the most of what you have.

Zij hangt haar man de blauwe huik om 

Look at this lovely lady, here she is helping put a blue cloak on her husband. What a great wife, right? Wrong. Blue was the colour that represented trickery and deceit and so this saying is taken to mean that the wife is cheating on the husband. 

The saying "to pull the wool over his eyes," springs to mind.

Bij de duivel te biecht gaan

Here we can see a man on his knees talking to a...tree man? At least, that's what it looks like at first glance. Really, this is supposed to show someone confessing to the devil, which can be taken to mean he is revealing secrets to the enemy.

Op hete kolen zitten

This man has been painted sitting on hot coals. This saying is still widely in use today and means that someone is impatient. 

Ergens de gek mee scheren 

You would be forgiven if you had no idea what is going on here. It looks like someone is trying to force-feed a guy in a onesie with a trowel. Actually, the guy is shaving a fool without lather, a saying that is taken to mean, to trick someone. 

Twee zotten onder één kaproen ​​​​​​

Did you notice those two fools under one hood in the back? Stupidity loves company!