Habit de Caffetier thumbnail 1
On display
Image of Gallery in South Kensington

Habit de Caffetier

Print
1700-1725 (made)
Artist/Maker
Nicolas De Larmessin (printmaker)
Jacques Chiquet (publisher)
Place of origin
Paris (printed)

A stylized character made up of accoutrements relating to the making and serving of coffee, tea, and chocolate. The figure wears a caddy on his head and is smoking a pipe. He is holding a tray in one hand with a selection of water and liqueur bottles and glasses and in the other a chocolate pot. The bows on his boots are made up of pipes. In the background is a landscape.

Object details

Category
Prints
Object type
Print
TitleHabit de Caffetier (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
etching and engraving on laid paper
Printing Ink
Laid Paper
Engraving
Etching
Brief description
'Habit de Caffetier' by Nicolas de Larmessin II; engraving; second edition published by Jacques Chiquet; French; early 18th century; from the series 'Les Costumes Grotesques et les Metiers'
Physical description
A stylized character made up of accoutrements relating to the making and serving of coffee, tea, and chocolate. The figure wears a caddy on his head and is smoking a pipe. He is holding a tray in one hand with a selection of water and liqueur bottles and glasses and in the other a chocolate pot. The bows on his boots are made up of pipes. In the background is a landscape.
Dimensions
  • Size of sheet height: 368mm
  • Size of sheet width: 248mm
  • Size of platemark height: 285mm
  • Size of platemark width: 194mm
  • Size of image height: 262mm
  • Size of image width: 189mm
Marks and inscriptions
  • Habit de Caffetier (Title printed in ink below the image)
  • A Paris Chez Chiquet (Printed in ink on the lefthand side below the title)
  • Rüe St. Jacq. pres les Mathurins (Printed in ink in the centre of the print below the title)
  • Avec Privil. du Roy (Printed in ink on the righthand side below the title)
  • 88 (Written in pen on the top right hand corner)
  • 310, P1 (Written in pencil on the reverse of the print)
Gallery label
(09.12.2015)
A Hot Drinks Seller
1700-25

The street vendor in this fanciful costume print advertises tea, coffee and chocolate. These drinks became fashionable in Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries. Tea came from China, coffee from the Ottoman Empire, and chocolate from Mexico. The popularity of these drinks in Europe had a profound impact on social life and on global trade.

France (Paris)

Engraving and etching

From Les Costumes Grotesques et les Métiers by Nicolas de Larmessin II (first published 1691)
Bibliographic reference
Consumption and the World of Goods; edited by John Brewer and Roy Porter
Collection
Prints, Drawings & Paintings Collection
Accession number
24868:26

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Record createdJune 30, 2009
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O819438/habit-de-caffetier-print-nicolas-de-larmessin/
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