Cookware Peddler 1746

This print, Cookware Peddler, was made by Anne Claude Philippe Caylus sometime in the 18th century using etching, a printmaking technique in which lines are incised into a metal plate with acid, then inked and printed. The image depicts a man carrying a basket laden with kitchenware; lard pots and spoons. The print captures a moment in the daily life of 18th-century Paris, revealing the labor and trade that sustained the city. Etchings like this were often made to document trades and professions, capturing the faces of workers and the tools they use. Here we see an intimate portrait of the material world of labor, commerce, and consumption in the pre-industrial era. Caylus's print invites us to consider the relationship between fine art and the everyday, reminding us that even the most mundane objects have a story to tell about the work and lives of those who made and used them.