A History of Women’s Bare Breasts in Western Art

From 23,000 BC to the 21st Century

Venere di Urbino (also known as “Reclining Venus”) by Titian. Public domain.

Nude carvings and paintings have always been a feature of European art. Right from the moment Stone Age hunters learned how to carve rock and ivory or how to shape clay and fire it to produce little statues with surprising detail, the female nude — whether meant to inspire, titillate or just represent how women dressed in…