Paris Lesbos

This article recounts something of the history of the lesbian world of Paris at the fin de siècle. It tells of the public visibility of lesbian women and the recognition of their place in Paris society whether in the salons of the upper crust, in the theatre, or in the brothels. It touches on the idea of Paris as a city where multiple and transgressive identities played within an unstable ambience where all was masks and mirrors, and little was what it seemed; this itself contributed to the concept of Paris both as a place of decadence and a place of tolerance: "gay Paree." It also leaves open how and why "Paris Lesbos" disappeared.