The oriental despot trope flattered absolutist rulers and their sexual fantasies

Evidence

A minor artistic fashion celebrated the image of the oriental potentate. The image of the oriental despot who ruled over men and had his way with women, yet ruled wisely to the benefit of all, articulated well the spirit of absolutist rule—and helped to ingratiate playwrights, artists, and composers with their sovereign. … Here the ruler is inspecting some young women that have been presented to him at his order. The biblical content of the work, if any, is as subservient as its oriental detail to the idea of portraying a male fantasy of unbridled sexual power. — Ivan Davidson Kalmar, Derek Penslar, Orientalism and the Jews, 184

Categorization

• XREF: Echoes the immodesty moral-panic essay: artistic depictions of power/sexual fantasy track political structures, just as dress panics track class and identity signaling. — connects to: Delacroix depicted the Oriental despot as cruel, powerful, and sexually deviant