Game Market - Richard Earlom

A detailed 1783 mezzotint by Richard Earlom, reproducing a still life by Frans Snyders, featuring a collection of game and market goods.

This mezzotint by Richard Earlom, published in 1783, reproduces a painting by the Flemish master Frans Snyders. Earlom was a highly skilled engraver, known for his ability to translate the tonal qualities of oil paint into the medium of print. The composition depicts a busy market scene, crowded with an abundance of hunted game, including a large swan, a boar head, and various birds. A figure stands to the left, holding a peacock, while a dog occupies the foreground. The work demonstrates the technical precision required for mezzotint, a process that relies on creating subtle gradations of light and shadow rather than simple line work.

Snyders, who worked in the seventeenth century, was celebrated for his large-scale depictions of animals and produce. Earlom’s print captures the texture of feathers, fur, and skin with remarkable fidelity. The inclusion of the Duke of Newcastle’s coat of arms at the base indicates the print was commissioned or produced for a collection at Clumber Park. The scene is typical of the period's interest in Dutch and Flemish still life traditions, which often combined domestic utility with a display of material wealth. The print serves as a record of the original painting, which was part of the Houghton Hall collection before moving to the Hermitage Museum. Earlom’s work remains a fine example of eighteenth-century reproductive printmaking, where the engraver acted as a bridge between historical European painting and the British collecting public.