Covent Garden Market

It is five o'clock in the morning and a crowd of market workers and customers, has gathered at Covent Garden for the market. Phoebus Levin's painting conveys the bustle surrounding the various stalls, which continued to increase in number during the 18th century.

The view is taken from James Street on the north side of the piazza, looking south towards the market building. On the left is a potato seller, a flower seller and a child sleeping in one of the market baskets; on the right can be seen an African blind man and a porter.

People from different social classes came together at the market. By the Tavistock Hotel on the left, well-dressed ladies in bonnets stand in close proximity to beggars and scruffy children. Between the market building and the stalls filled with colourful produce, several horse-drawn carts can be seen piled high with baskets.

Born in Germany, the artist Phoebus Levin studied at the Berlin Academy for eight years. After working in Rome for several years, he moved to London in 1855, where he remained until 1878.