The bed of one of the great courtesans of 19th century Paris, Valtesse de la Bigne.

18 Jan The bed of one of the great courtesans of 19th century Paris, Valtesse de la Bigne.

Posted at 05:30h in art history, courtesans, Metropolitan Museum, Shady Ladies, Women's History by Professor Andrew Lear

Great bed, eh? Maybe we should call it something like a temple of love. This is the bed of one of the great courtesans of 19th century Paris, Valtesse de la Bigne. Aside from her rich patrons, de la Bigne was the lover of several important artists, including Courbet and Manet, for whom she also modeled. Zola based the title character of Nana on her and described the bed (“a throne, an altar, where Paris came to admire her sovereign nudity” etc) in the novel. In short, it’s an amazing piece of furniture, and you can see it on our Shady Ladies of Paris tour this summer!