Plate 1: four street vendors from Madrid selling blueberries, onions, tea, and baskets, from 'Los Gritos de Madrid' (The Cries of Madrid)

The first in a group of eighteen hand-coloured engravings with a total of 72 figures representing the cries (trades/street vendors) of Madrid. Their occupations are many, and include everything from fish mongers, fruit and sweet vendors to those selling household items (chairs, pots, matts etc). This set is the first edition before each sheet was cut into four and the figures individually numbered and enclosed within a border. Each figure in the present set is accompanied by a title pertaining to their occupation. The set is notable for its delicate hand colouring. Images of cries were immensely popular from the sixteenth century, especially in Italy and France. In Spain few are known, and this group is of particular interest, for, in addition to identifying the trade, the phonetic rending of their cry they issued to attract customers is sometimes provided, presumably because it was so recognizable.




See: Miguel Gamborino, ‘Los Gritos de Madrid. Colección de setenta y dos grabados de Maigues Gamborino’, texts by José Antonio Calvo Torija and Ramón Gómez de la Serna, Madrid 1997 (facsimile edition of second edition).