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Night And Sleep (1878)

Night floats through the evening sky, his red robes reminiscent of the sunset, and his billowing cloak darkening the sky behind him. He floats arm in arm with Sleep, who gently scatters poppies onto the earth beneath, from the armful of flowers that he has taken from his girdle. (The Victorians used laudanum as a sleeping draught, which was made from tincture of the opium poppy.) Both figures appear relaxed, with closed eyes, as if already half-asleep.

oil on canvas, 42 x 62 inches

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