This terra-cotta is believed to be a sketch for a marble in the Louvre titled A Sleeping Shepherd. Although the arm positions differ and a staff has been added in the marble version, there are strong correspondences in the figure’s sensual, relaxed pose and unusual backward tilt of his head. In line with academic training at the time, sculptors commonly created terra-cotta sketches such as this directly from nude models, which resulted in a freshness and immediacy that often were lost during the translation into marble.