The Slave Market (Boulanger)

The Slave Market
Artist	Gustave Boulanger
Year	1886
Medium	Oil on canvas
Dimensions	77.5 cm × 99 cm (30.5 in × 39 in)
Location	Private Collection

The Slave Market is a painting by the French artist Gustave Boulanger. It was first shown at the Paris Salon of 1886. Boulanger specialized in classical and Orientalist genre scenes. Its title in the Salon catalogue was Un Maquignon d’esclaves à Rome (A Slave Dealer in Rome).^[1]As early as 1888 the French press called it Vente d’esclaves (Sale of Slaves).^[2] In English it is known as The Slave Market. As showing slave markets was a popular theme in orientalist art, there are many paintings with this theme.

It is often compared to the other paintings, and confused with them. Very often, it is taken for a painting by Boulanger's friend and fellow painter Jean-Léon Gérôme.

1. ↑ Lafenestre (1886), p.31.
2. ↑ Javel (1888), p. 5.