It is a sketch made for a contest that would decide an official painting destined to represent the French Second Republic.

[1] The French Second Republic was proclaimed on 24 February 1848, to replace the deposed king Louis Philippe.

Daumier, who was a republican and a firm supporter of the new regime, was one of the 700 artists who entered the competition, including Jean-Léon Gérôme and Hippolyte Flandrin, with their final sketches shown at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, from 5 to 8 April 1848.

[2][3] The painting by Daumier, who was best known as a caricaturist, attracted much attention for its composition, which seemed inspired by the Italian painter Andrea del Sarto's work Charity.

The official website of the Musée d'Orsay states that "this "big woman" summed up an ideal, that of a strong republic, nourishing and educating her children.