One of literature's erotic masterpieces
Part One (title page) / Book One (cover, colophon) / Vol. I (cover). Artwork by Milo Manara

Aphrodite is a masterpiece of French 19th century literature. This classical tale of sensuous love was one of the best-selling novels of its time. Published in 1896, Aphrodite made Pierre Louÿs famous and was by far his greatest success, surpassing that of his other well-know works such as The Songs of Bilitis. Conceived as a novel of the antiquity focusing on women & on light, Aphrodite lends itself naturally to illustration.

The story takes place in Alexandria in the 1st Century BC where Demetrios, a renowned artist falls in love with a courtesan, Chrysis.

She asks him to prove his love to her by committing three crimes & Demetrios agrees.

For this English edition we have deliberately chosen to use an anonymous translation from 1928 [by Whittaker Chambers], whose delectably quaint language we feel best preserves the picturesque style of Louÿs' original.