Abstract
<jats:p>The research aims to identify the semantic content of Jean-François Millet’s genre painting “The Gleaners” (1857). The article presents a structural-semiotic analysis of the work, proposing a semantic structure for the canvas and identifying the artistic signs within the pictorial text. These signs are interpreted in the context of mythological systems, philosophical inquiry, and religious thought. Furthermore, the study presents the visual structures of the work as a concentrated expression of the painting’s semantic essence. The scientific novelty lies in the first structural-semiotic analysis of Millet’s painting as an artistic text to reveal its profound semantic layers. In the composition, the harvest – depicted as the most significant and demanding seasonal labor – serves as an allegory for the cultivation of spiritual values. In “The Gleaners”, the image of peasant women gathering leftover ears of wheat symbolizes humanity across the ages, cultivating sacred ideals as superhuman landmarks that define the core of culture and preserve the spiritual depth of existence. The study argues that the semantic content of “The Gleaners” transcends the boundaries of genre painting, ascending to the level of historical painting, where a traditional everyday subject represents an idea of universal significance. The study identifies “the circle” and “the sickle” as visual structures of the pictorial text that concentrate the essence of the artistic image. The interpretation of this symbolism allows for a refined understanding of the work’s meaning. The study concludes that the core of Millet’s work lies in the spiritual activity of humanity directed toward the cultivation and veneration of the sacred constituents of culture, which constitute the purpose and meaning of human existence.</jats:p>