BOUCHER

This print is based on a recently discovered drawing by Boucher, which hangs alongside. In Ravenet’s etching, the composition is reversed and the caption describes the subject as a “Woman of Constantinople,” part of a suite of twelve prints of women in different costumes representing France, Italy, and the Levant. Gabriel Huquier was the publisher of the series, and, from the catalogue of his 1772 estate sale, it would seem that he was also owner of the preparatory drawings. Boucher’s many collaborations with printmakers vastly expanded the dissemination of his imagery and the impact of his style.