France’s Dirty Secret In The Open

I lived in Paris for a few months in the mid-1970s. One of my favourite haunts was Bibliothèque Nationale. I had heard in whispers about its ambitious and controversial official project then on to collect France’s erotica and pornography.

So I was not surprised by the latest news report that “France’s official hoard of erotica and pornography, lovingly assembled by the Bibliothèque Nationale over a period of 170 years, will be thrown open to the startled eyes of the public for the first time this week.

“More than 350 books and prints from the forbidden section of the state library – officially known as “L’Enfer” (hell) – will be presented in an academically meticulous, but often frankly filthy, exhibition in Paris for three months from tomorrow.

“The ‘Enfer’ section of the Bibliothèque Nationale – books and prints and photographs purchased, confiscated or donated over almost two centuries – is believed to be one of the largest and richest collections of pornographic and erotic materials in the world. The Vatican’s secret stash is said to be even larger but that, presumably, will never be opened to the public.

“The collection – over 1,700 books and many more prints and pamphlets – was obtained partly by raids and confiscations. A large part of L’Enfer came from the private library of a political opponent of the Emperor Napoleon III, who was raided by police looking for anti-Imperial tracts in 1866. They found hundreds of old works which were judged ‘contrary to good public morals’. A court ordered the books to be burned but the then head of the Bibliothèque Nationale insisted they should be saved for posterity.”

To read The Independent story please click here…