Print Description
This print depicts a genre scene of a quack medicine seller at a fair. Several figures are gathered around the stand, and one is purchasing the medicine. The scene is animated, with people dressed in rustic attire. The backdrop includes a makeshift tent and a dark, forested setting. The print captures a moment of public curiosity and interaction, typical of such fairs. The style is reminiscent of Adriaen van Ostade’s genre works.
Made by an anonymous engraver after Adriaen van Ostade.
Medium: Mezzotint engraving on wove (vellin) paper.
Sheet size: 19.5 x 26.9 cm (7.68 x 10.59 inch). Image size: 16.7 x 23 cm. (6.57 x 9.06 inch).
Condition: very good, given age. Top right corner remargined. General age-related toning and/or occasional minor defects from handling. Please study scan carefully.
ADRIAEN VAN OSTADE, JOHN BOYDELL, QUACK MEDICINE, FAIR, GENRE PRINT, 1680, 1820, ENGRAVING | PCO-E21-10
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Originally publised in c. 1680. This ed published by John Boydell, “Collection of Portraits,” ca. 1820.
Biography artist: Adriaen van Ostade (1610-1685) was a Dutch Golden Age painter and printmaker known for his genre scenes depicting the everyday life of peasants and the lower class. He was a pupil of Frans Hals and influenced many later artists, including Cornelis Bega and Jan Steen.
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