The Gleaners
It depicts two peasants during the potato harvest in Barbizon, with a view of the church tower of Chailly-en-Bière. At their feet is a small basket of potatoes, and around them a cart and a pitchfork. Various interpretations of the relationship between the two peasants have been made, such as colleagues at work, husband and wife pair, or (as Gambetta interpreted it) farmer and maidservant. An 1889 sales catalogue described them simply as "a young peasant and his companion". Millet sold "The Angelus" after his "The Gleaners" was sold at the Salon in 1857. About half the size, it brought him less than half the amount for which he sold "The Gleaners." "The Angelus" was eventually shown the year before Millet's death in Brussels in 1874, where it was greatly admired by Léon Gambetta.