Mountebank

Mountebank is an excellent word, one that has sadly fallen out of use in favor of the far more dull and mundane "con man" or something similarly uninspired. The AHD defines mountebank as "A hawker of quack medicines who attracts customers with stories, jokes or tricks" (an oddly specific definition) or simply "A flamboyant charlatan." It can also be used as a verb, as in "To ensnare or prevail with trickery."

The word comes from the Italian "montambanco" which is a contraction of the phrase "monta im banco," meaning one who gets onto the bench. one can imagine Italian snake-oil salsemen climbing onto a bench in order to get the attention of potential customers. The word is something of a hybrid, as "monta" comes from the Vulgar Latin "montare," (to mount) and of course "im" comes from the Latin "in," but "banco" can be traced back to the Old High German "bank," meaning bench or table.