starring Catherine McCormack , tells the story of Veronica Franco , a Venetian courtesan. Angellica Bianca in Aphra Behn ‘s 1677 play The Rover . Nana , in Emile Zola ‘s eponymous novel of 1880 is a courtesan. In Sarah Dunant ‘s In the Company of the Courtesan , Fiammetta Bianchini,