Facebook apologises for censoring 30,000-year-old naked statue

  • 03/03/2018
It's an 11-centimetre fertility symbol of a nude obese woman.
It's an 11-centimetre fertility symbol of a nude obese woman. Photo credit: Reuters

Facebook has apologised after it censored a post of a 30,000-year-old statuette of a naked woman.

Named the "Venus of Willendorf", it's an 11-centimetre fertility symbol of a nude obese woman and the most well-known prehistoric depiction of a woman worldwide.

The photo was posted to the social media site by Italian arts activist Laura Ghianda, and the post went viral. But Facebook censored the image, setting off a worldwide uproar.

"An archaeological object, especially such an iconic one, should not be banned from Facebook because of 'nudity', as no artwork should be," said the Natural History Museum (NHM) in Vienna, which displays the statuette.

Ms Ghianda also protested, saying the "war on human culture and modern intellectualism will not be tolerated".

Now, Facebook has backed down and apologised for its actions. A spokesperson told press agency AFP Facebook doesn't allow any depictions of nudity.

"However, we make an exception for statues, which is why the post should have been approved," she told AFP.

Newshub.