LE MARCHAND D'ORVIETAN
Classification
Bound print
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Purchased for the Museum by the Advisory Council
Accession Number
1921-6-224-75
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
**LE MARCHAND D'ORVIETAN** *Antoine Watteau (French, 1684–1721), 1723–1735* Bound print, Smithsonian American Art Museum Antoine Watteau, a master of the Rococo style, captured the elegance and whimsy of 18th-century French life in his innovative *fêtes galantes*—dreamy scenes of courtship and leisure. *Le Marchand d'Orvietan*, meaning "The Orvietan Merchant," likely depicts a charismatic street vendor peddling Orvietan, a popular quack remedy from the Italian town of Orvieto. Such figures, blending theater and everyday commerce, reflect Watteau's fascination with commedia dell'arte per...