JF Ptak Science Books Quick Post
This is a rather poetic approach to describing and naming street vendors during the reign of Louis XVI–of course these sorts of descriptions tend to be so in another language. “La boheme du travail une sorte de tradition de la misere, la defroque prend sur le dos de ces irreguliers du travailuine mem forme et une meme coleur…” is how these images are described by L(eon) Roger-Miles’ in Comment Discerner les Styles du VIIIe au XIXe Siecle…etudes sur les formers et les Variations dans le Costume et la Mode, by L(eon) Roger-Miles, volume III, and published in Lyon around 1900. Bohemian workers in a tradition of misery (or thereabouts) is how this is described–common people of a remedial ability, trying to make a penny. Street vendors.
- Earlier in this blog I wrote on a more-fanciful description of professions in “The Dance of Work: Satires and Grotesques of the Professions, 1700”, here.
- Also, another interesting bit, “The Alphabet of Professions, 1850”, here
And what these people are selling: (1) oyster seller (with a stubby knife hanging from a string); (2) a kernel seller (which I think refers to corn); (3) a cream and milk seller; (4) water carrier; (5) petseller, with pockets filled with puppies and kittens; (6) ribbon seller, when ribbons were much more popular and played roles in courtship; (7) rabbit skin seller; (8) lottery seller; (9) I believe is a clothing cleaner, fabric cleaner, who would boil materials and such; (10) bird seller; and (11) a magic lantern performer. Perhaps the most interesting to me in this group is the last, a guy hauling around a magic lantern and slides, offering up optical performances to whatever audience he could muster.
