From the dawn of time, ever since Adam and Eve, all artists of every age—whether the Egyptian, Greek, or Roman artists of Antiquity, or more recent famous names such as Rembrandt, Courbet, Degas, or Picasso—have succumbed to their fantasies, obsessions, and libido and produced erotic works that the censors have taken good care to keep from the public. For Erotica Universalis, we surface from the subterranean realms of the museums to enter those of our national and private libraries. Here we discover that not only most of our famous writers, such as Ovid, Aretino, Voltaire, Verlaine, or Maupassant, wrote erotic texts that bordered on indecency, but also that great artists like Boucher, Fragonard, Dalí, or Matisse were inspired to provide suitable illustrations for these naughty books.

For this new hardcover edition of the classic 1995 best seller, we have culled highlights from our Erotica Universalis collection.