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ROME (Reuters) - Restoration works in a Roman church have revealed two bare-breasted beauties designed by Bernini but hidden behind bronze 'corsets' for more than 100 years, officials say. The figures, representing truth and charity, were designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini and sculpted with his assistants in the 1660s for the Baroque church of Sant'Isidoro, but later censored by religious leaders. 'The nudes were a bit too provocative for the Victorians, so they were covered with bronze corsets in 1863,' Angela Negro, the director of restoration works at the church, told Reuters on Tuesday. 'We decided to bare all,' she said. The striptease revealed two white marble figures squeezing their breasts seductively. 'The surprise was that the original marble hadn't been damaged in any way,' Negro said. 'We have always seen these virtues covered and we were worried about what we would find underneath, but the nudes are in perfect condition.' The same was not true for a little marble cherub. After removing the loin cloth that had been added, restorers discovered his offending parts had been chipped off.
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