A Not so Romantic Valentine Story

Victor Noir, born Yvan Salmon, was a young journalist who was shot in 1870 by the cousin of Napoleon Bonaparte III. His assassination created a huge political scandal at the time, and more than 100,000 people attended his funeral in Neuilly before his remains were moved to Paris in 1891. But what remained most striking about this man was not simply his death, it was his tomb.

On his grave was built a bronze figure of a man lying on his back, like a martyr. A bronze body, fallen and exposed, yet easily accessible to the public.

The sculpture gradually became over time associated with love, luck, and fertility. Couples began visiting, leaving flowers, touching the statue, rubbing the groin area and kissing its lips as rituals believed to encourage conception or romantic fulfillment. A political death transformed into a romantic superstition.