La Gageure des trois Commeres: La Servante, from "Contes et nouvelles en vers par Jean de La Fontaine. A Paris, de l'imprimerie de P. Didot, l'an III de la République, 1795"

Art Historical Context

Step into the whimsical world of 18th-century French satire with *La Gageure des troismeres: La Serv*, an etching from Jean de La Fontaine's *Contes et nouvelles en*, published in Paris by Pierre Didot lîné in 1795 third year of the French Republic This print illustrates a lively scene from La Fontaine's tale of three gossiping women and their wager, focusing on the servant in a cozy bedroom setting. Amid the Revolution's turbulence, the work revives the rococo spirit through designs by Jean Honoré Fragonard, the master of frothy, sensual interiors, etched by Philippe Trière. As a first-state etching (per Cohen's catalog), this rare impression captures fine lines and tonal subtleties before later states altered details, showcasing the precision of 18th-century printmaking. Fragonard's fluid style infuses the domestic tableau—women and servants amid bedroom intimacy—with erotic wit and social observation, echoing La Fontaine's bawdy moral tales. Printed on a modest sheet (13 1/8 × 9 5/8 in.), it highlights Didot's elegant typography, blending literature and art. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department (Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1933), this piece bridges pre-Revolutionary frivolity and republican innovation, inviting visitors to savor its mischievous charm and the era's enduring love for clever storytelling.

About the Artist

Jean de La Fontaine|Jean Honoré Fragonard|Philippe Trière|Pierre Didot l'ainé (French|French|French) · 1621 |1750 | –1695 |1780 |

French, Château-Thierry 1621–1695 Paris|active ca. 1750 (?)–1780|Paris