A solitary, white-veiled figure standing in a shadowed landscape appears almost luminous against the dark canopy of trees and the subdued greens and browns of the surrounding terrain. Corot keeps the composition restrained, allowing the contrast between the pale figure and the darker landscape to carry its emotional weight. Rather than illustrating a dramatic biblical episode directly, the painting evokes a sense of mystery and stillness. The figure may represent Lot’s wife, as the title suggests, but her ghostlike appearance also lends itself to an interpretation as a spirit or soul.

This work is included in the fifth supplement to Alfred Robaut’s Corot Catalogue Raisonne prepared by Martin Dieterle and Claire Lebeau.

The work has a particularly interesting connection to Corot’s larger artistic plans. In discussing this work, Martin Dieterle points out that the present work is mentioned in the archives of Tedesco Freres. It was noted that a study for the subject “La Femme de Loth” was seen in the artist’s studio. This confirms that Corot intended to paint a larger work as a decoration for placement in a salon or house of worship, as suggested by the rounded edges at the top corners.

This type of veiled figure in white, sometimes interpreted as “La Femme de Loth” or merely as a ghost or “soul”, appears in several works by Corot including “L’incendie de Sodome” (Metropolitan Museum of Art).

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