FB blocks photo of 16th century statue of Neptune, says it is "sexually explicit"

The statue of Neptune in Bologna, Italy. Pic/Facebook/Elisa Barbari

London: Facebook blocked a photograph of a 16th century statue of sea god Neptune posted by an Italian art historian, claiming it is "sexually explicit". The social media giant later apologised, saying the censorship was a mistake.

Elisa Barbari had chosen the statue in the Italian city of Bologna, which shows Neptune naked and holding a trident, to illustrate her Facebook page - Stories, curiosities and views of Bologna. But, she was asked to remove the photograph as it fell foul of Facebook's privacy policies.

The artist responded to a statement released by Facebook, with a post on her page: ‘Yes to Neptune, no to censorship'.

"How can a work of art, our very own statue of Neptune, be the object of censorship?" she asked.