Odalisque

This painting depicts an odalisque, that is, a slave girl who served the sultan’s wives. The figure is set against a nocturnal backdrop, adorned with bracelets, armbands, anklets, earrings and jewellery in her tied-back hair. She is shown seated on a bed of straw-coloured grass, pouring an ointment into a ceramic vessel. In the foreground, next to some fallen leaves, are two musical instruments of eastern origin. Pradilla may have become familiar with this type of instrument through photographs or engravings, or by purchasing them from an antique dealer.