Venice, City of Love

Erotic sculpture at the Procuratie Nove in Venice

Erotic sculpture in Venice Venice, city of love, who would doubt it! Famous lovers and love stories, the entire history of Venice is intimately linked to Cupid.

Romanticism and eroticism, sacred love or profane love, Cupid reigns supreme here, always ready to shoot his intoxicating arrows.

When talking about eroticism and libertinism, one naturally thinks of Giacomo Casanova or Giorgio Baffo and the Venetian tradition of courtesans, who were often well-educated yet frivolous.

Nor can we forget the other local tradition, that of the sigisbeo, a gentleman who, with the consent of the lady, often older than himself, and rather than not knowing where the lady will find satisfaction, prefers to know that she will find it in familiar arms and… more controllable.

Leda and the Swan - Erotic sculpture under an archway in the Procuratie Nuove in Venice

Leda and the Swan Molmenti, in his study of Venetian customs, presents the Grand Canal at sunset in spring:

“The patrician women were often accompanied by their ladies-in-waiting, and they exchanged glances and smiles with the gentlemen who followed them in another gondola, weaving love intrigues in this unique street, between the brown marble palaces, the water and the cheerful colours of the sky colours.

At night, serenades travelled along the Grand Canal, and elegant figures of women could be seen silhouetted against the illuminated balconies.”
Molmenti - Private Life in Venice 1882

If Venice was a city of lust, it is also a city of sublime love, love of beauty, pure and romantic love.

The famous love affairs of George Sand with Alfred de Musset, Lord Byron, Gabriele d'Annunzio and many others have given Venice its romantic reputation.

Here is what George Sand, while staying in Venice, had to say about love in a letter dated 25 June 1834 to her friend Émile Paultre:

“Life is the most beautiful thing in the world when you are in love, and the most hateful when you cease to love.

That is to say, in my opinion, love is everything […] True love is when the heart, mind and body understand each other and embrace each other.”