# The Slave Market

**Jacques Callot** (French, 1592–1635)  
1620  
etching on laid paper  
plate: 11.4 × 20.7 cm (4 1/2 × 8 1/8 in.) sheet: 16.1 × 17.3 cm (6 5/16 × 6 13/16 in.)

Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1969.15.401. [The museum's record](https://www.nga.gov/collection/art-object-page.51556.html).

## About this work

Jacques Callot made this in 1620, aged 28. It is now at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.

### What you’re looking at

This is a drawing of a busy street scene with architectural structures and various figures. It depicts a large open area bordered by a grand building to the left and a rounded tower or structure to the right. The left side of the scene is lined with stairs leading up to an elevated walkway or platform, where people are gathered. In the middle and to the right, a crowd has formed, encompassing the space in front of the tower. Various individuals, some wearing distinctive headgear, are seen mingling and gesturing. The architectural details in the background, such as the windows and brickwork of the tower, frame the scene below. A hand-operated apparatus extends from the tower, possibly for lifting goods or supplies. The drawing captures a dynamic urban moment.

_Description from the National Gallery of Art._

### How it was made

- **Etching.** The artist draws with a needle through a waxy coating on a copper plate, and acid bites the exposed lines. The plate is then inked, wiped and printed under pressure, so the line keeps the freedom of drawing.
- **Laid paper.** Handmade on a mould of close-set wires, which leave fine parallel lines you can see when the sheet is held to the light.

### [Jacques Callot](https://www.ochreeditions.com/artists/jacques-callot)

French, 1592–1635

## Facts

- Type: Print
- The artist was 28
- Real size: about 4½ × 8 in (11 × 21 cm). The original is small: even the 8 × 10 in print shows it larger than life.
- Century: 17th century
- Subjects: Hat, animal, Building, Figures, Spear
- Colour: white
- Rights: public domain (CC0 1.0); free to use for any purpose.

## Get it

- Free download, full resolution: https://img.ochreeditions.com/m/1544.jpg?dl=1
- Image: https://img.ochreeditions.com/a/1544/1920.jpg
- Giclée reproduction on Hahnemühle Photo Rag: 8 × 10 in $28; 11 × 14 in $38; 12 × 16 in $42; 16 × 20 in $56; 18 × 24 in $68; 20 × 30 in $86
- Framed reproduction: 8 × 10 in $78; 11 × 14 in $98; 12 × 16 in $108; 16 × 20 in $138; 18 × 24 in $164; 20 × 30 in $208
- Canvas reproduction: 8 × 10 in $58; 11 × 14 in $72; 12 × 16 in $79; 16 × 20 in $98; 18 × 24 in $118
- Print-ready file: 8 × 10 in $2; 11 × 14 in $2; 12 × 16 in $3; 16 × 20 in $3; 18 × 24 in $3; 20 × 30 in $5

Sizes stop where the museum's file would print below 150 pixels per inch. Everything sold is a reproduction, made to order. [Order a print](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/the-slave-market-nga-51556).