The sultana

Description

Madame de Pompadour, mistress of King Louis XV, posed for the painter Carle van Loo in the guise of a “Haseki Sultan” in keeping with the fashion of the day, seeking to underscore her power and intellectual refinement. In the painting, Pompadour is not depicted in a crowded harem scene, but rather in an intimate and comfortable corner, reclining on a divan. She accepts coffee offered by a Black concubine while holding a long chibouk (pipe) in her other hand, enacting the Oriental ritual of “pleasure.” This composition elevates the Ottoman woman from a mere object of the gaze into a noble figure savouring luxury and refined delights.