Long necklace after "Sleep"

To satisfy the Ottoman diplomat Khalil Bey, a keen art lover, who had commissioned this work, Courbet transposed freely the language of the seraglio by placing this scene in the confined atmosphere of a conspicuously luxurious room.

The painter depicted two different forms of feminine beauty by creating a contrast between the complexions and hair of the models. Although the subject is inspired by 18th century licentious engravings and literary descriptions of lesbian love, Sleep is, above all, faithful to the world of realism and voluptuousness inherent in the art of Courbet. According to Emile Zola, the painter belonged "to the family of makers of flesh, and whether he likes it or not, his brothers are Veronese, Rembrandt and Titian".
(Mes Haines, Causeries littéraires et artistiques, Le Salut Public, 26 and 31 August 1865)