Medium
		etching
Measurements
		16.8 × 10.8 cm (image) 17.8 × 11.8 cm (plate) 22.6 × 16.0 cm (support)
Credit Line
			National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Felton Bequest, 1927			
Gallery location
		Not on display
About this work
Jean-François Millet celebrated the working and lower classes in his art by imbuing his subjects with great dignity and strength of character. This image shows a woman concentrating on the repetitive chore of churning butter, a mundane but necessary task. She is firmly focused on the task at hand, ignoring the persistent cat at her feet, who is hoping for spillage or a treat when the woman’s job is done. Of course, the attention of the cat should be on its own role, keeping mice from the bags of grain visible in the background.
Catalogue/s Raisonné
		Delteil 10 iii
Edition
		3rd state
Inscription
		printed in ink (in image) l.c.: Impe (e in superscript) par Aug. Delâtre, Rue St (t in superscript) Jacque 171.
Accession Number
		3651-3
Departments
			International Prints / International Prints and Drawings
This digital record has been made available on NGV Collection Online through the generous support of the Joe White Bequest