Jeaurat, Étienne (1699 - 1789)

The interior scene combines three characters: an elderly patient with a pale complexion sitting in his chair and his young wife listening to the recommendations of a man in an oriental costume carrying a box of medicine. This pseudo-healer and charlatan advocates taking Orvietan, a treatment created in Italy made from honey and mysterious powders and highly prized during the 18^th century. The title of the work is also a direct reference to Jean de La Fontaine’s fable L’Abbesse (The Sick Abbess). The painting describes an endearing dual satire of everyday life, denouncing both the age difference between spouses, arranged marriages, and the fashion for herbs and medicines touted and sold by self-appointed doctors.