Vintage black and white photograph of a glamourous woman reclining on a sofa by E. Donald Roberts, Jr. c1894.
An odalisque was a female slave in an Ottoman seraglio. She was an assistant or apprentice to the concubines and wives, and she might rise in status to become one of them. Most odalisques were part of the Imperial Harem, that is, the household of the sultan.
In popular use, the word odalisque also may refer to a mistress, concubine or paramour of a wealthy man.
During the 19th century, odalisques became common fantasy figures in the artistic movement known as Orientalism, being featured in many erotic artworks from that era.