Groep figuren drinkend bij een bron met heiligenbeeld 1818

Antoinette Cécile Hortense Haudebourt-Lescot made this print of a group of figures drinking at a fountain with a religious statue. Haudebourt-Lescot was a French artist, and the image depicts a scene in Italy, probably in the Papal States. We can see the cultural importance of religion in daily life with the statue overlooking the mundane act of drinking water. Public fountains in Italy were important social spaces, especially for the poor, who relied on them for drinking water. The religious statue is a symbol of the power of the church and its place in everyday life. To understand this image better, research into the social history of 19th-century Italy, the history of public fountains, and the role of women artists in the 19th century would provide much deeper insight. Art is always a product of its social and institutional context.