A Eunuch's Dream France, 19th century

This painting, inspired by Charles Montesquieu's Persian Letters (published in 1721), depicts a eunuch who wanted to marry a harem slave. He experienced a vision of her while smoking his opium pipe, but her little companion holding a knife dripping with blood reminds us that the eunuch's anatomy precludes the fulfillment of his dream. The outline of a hand next to the signature is a khamsa, a symbol used to ward off evil.

A Eunuch's Dream France, 19th century

Jean-Jules-Antoine Lecomte du Nouÿ — Google Arts & Culture

A Eunuch's Dream France, 19th century

Jean-Jules-Antoine Lecomte du Nouÿ — Google Arts & Culture

A Eunuch's Dream France, 19th century

A Eunuch's Dream France, 19th century

Jean-Jules-Antoine Lecomte du Nouÿ — Google Arts & Culture

A Eunuch's Dream France, 19th century

A Eunuch's Dream France, 19th century