Courtesan
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A courtesan is a prostitute with a courtly, wealthy, or upper-class clientele. Historically, the term referred to a courtier, a person who attended the court of a monarch or other powerful person.
Veronica Franco, famous Venetian poet and courtesan. Portrait by Tintoretto.
Courtesans with their servants by Lancelot Volders
Olympe Pélissier (Vernet, 1830) was described by Balzac as "the most beautiful courtesan in Paris". In 1846, she married Rossini.
Reveller courtesan BM E44
Cora Pearl
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Cora Pearl was an English courtesan or cocotte of the French demimonde who became well known during the period of the Second French Empire.
Courtesan
…a primary source of income. In cases like this, a courtesan was solely dependent on her benefactor or benefactors financially, making her vulnerable; Cora Pearl is a good example. Often, courtesans serving in this capacity began their career as a prostitute, although many came to the profession by other means…
Pearl c. 1860
Cora Pearl (colorized picture) 1860
Cora Pearl's police file, 1865. The photographer is André-Adolphe-Eugène Disdéri.
Cora Pearl, aged 29, and Prince Achille Murat (1865), photograph by Louis-Jean Delton.