Traveling Women Drinking Water
Medium
Etching and engraving
Dimensions
Sheet (trimmed): 11 7/8 × 14 3/16 in. (30.2 × 36 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1955
Accession Number
55.539.7
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
Created in 1758, *Traveling Women Drinking Water* exemplifies the refined elegance of French Rococo art. Designed by François Boucher, a leading painter of the period celebrated for his lighthearted pastoral and mythological scenes, and engraved by Jean Daullé, the print captures a moment of respite during a journey. The scene features elegantly dressed women pausing beside a waterfall, accompanied by men, dogs, and subtle heraldic elements like a coat of arms, evoking themes of travel, nature, and leisure popular in 18th-century France. The medium of etching and engraving allowed artists to achieve both delicate lines and rich tonal contrasts, making such prints widely accessible to collectors and enthusiasts beyond the royal court. This work reflects the era’s fascination with idealized rural life and graceful movement, blending narrative charm with decorative appeal. Now part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Drawings and Prints collection, it offers viewers a glimpse into the Rococo period’s emphasis on beauty, refinement, and the pleasures of the natural world.
About the Artist
Jean Daullé|François Boucher (French|French) · 1703 |1703 –1763 |1770
French, Abbeville 1703–1763 Paris|French, Paris 1703–1770 Paris