the “oriental renaissance” affected also the romantic movement. in fact, romantic writers and artists showed a great interest in this oriental rediscovery. a great example can be found in flaubert’s (one of the most important french writer of the 19th century) novel salammbò in 1862, where the orient is depicted as something opposite of the occident, eroticized and exoticized. travelers’ accounts were very popular and contributed to form an imaginary vision of the orient in the western societies. lord byron, victor hugo, nerval, chateaubriand are some of the famous writers of the time that evoked exotic scenes and wild adventures by their accounts.