Brussels now joins European capitals like Paris, Amsterdam and Berlin that already had Erotica museums.

The former doctor Guy Martens is the man behind this timely initiative. He has been collecting erotic objects for several decades.

The new museum is housed in a building on the Sint-Annastraat, near to the prestigious Grote Zavel (Grand Sablon) in the centre of Brussels. The house has three floors, each with around 30 m² of exhibition space. The location is a stone’s throw away from the Galerie Libertine that has been exhibiting erotic art since 2008.

Guy Martens’s collection includes 150 pieces in ivory, 50 Japanese wood carvings, twenty paintings, bronze sculptures and around 100 other objects. Dr Martens believes that erotica and mythology go hand in hand:

"The word erotica comes from the Greek god Eros. The idea is to show what is sacred about love.”

One of the most remarkable pieces in the collection is a recently-acquired marble bust of the Greek Phrygian god Attis, who was both the son and the love of the god Cybele. The sculpture originates from Anatolia and was made in the 1st century BC.

Visit Dr Martens's website