Pisorno Cinematografica

In this farce Madame Dalia (Alda Mangini) is a mature countess/pseudo-spiritualist grifter who has rented a villa by the sea and, avoiding police surveillance, runs a clandestine gambling den. In town for a peace conference two suitors, one American and one German, go to the gambling house in an attempt to win over Giulietta (Sophia Loren) Madame Dalia’s supposed niece, a woman they believe was the subject of a portrait they became enamoured with during the war.

In a village, rumours spread that a treasure is hidden nearby. To finance the search, a farmer sells a 14th-century painting of the Madonna, leaving it with a master restorer. The farmer's daughter, who felt a particular veneration for the sacred image, goes to the restorer's workshop to see the painting of the Madonna again and falls asleep in front of it. While the girl is asleep, the restorer begins to paint her portrait, which he will title "Sleeping Girl." In the end, the girl and the painter will marry and be able to keep the painting with them.