Thousands of years ago, in the age of matriarchs and Goddess worship, societies revered women’s sexuality as a life-giving force and celebrated it with elaborate sex rituals that took place in temples and included poetry, music, costumes and feasts.At some point in history, female genitalia were considered potent enough to be used as the catalyst for bringing the Earth and all life back from the brink of destruction. In myths and sacred art from diverse cultural backgrounds several goddesses (and women) publically display their genitalia.
Legends like the act of Ana-suromai provide a dramatic reminder that the common modern view of what the vagina represents, is not the only one to have existed. The negative judements which have grown around shame in todays society mean that we have forgotton our roots as well as the knowledge that the body should be regarded as a temple and that sexuality can and should be sacred.
The term Ana-suromai means to lift the skirt to expose the vulva.
The ancient Greek legends tells us how Baubo exposed herself to the goddess Demeter who was grieving over the loss of her daughter Persephone who had been kidnapped and taken to Hades.
When Baubo lifted her skirts she made Demeter laugh thereby restoring fertility to the world, which had been lost because of Demeter’s sadness.
As such Baubo has become a symbol for the power and energy of female sexuality.
Other cultures also have a Baubo figure. In ancient Japanese mythology she was Ame-no-uzume-no mikoto, who created a face on the front of her body to draw laughter from the Goddess Amaterasu, when she was hiding her light in a cave. Ame-no-uzume-no mikoto induced Amaterasu to emerge, bringing sunlight to the world again.
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Carving of the Greek goddess Baubo = power and energy of female sexuality and her life-affirming gesture called ana-suromai (Gr., skirt-raising) |
A ritual re-enactment of the legend of Ana Suromai became part of religious festivals, associated with the goddess of fertility, Demeter in ancient Greece.Descriptions of what took place, paint a picture of celebrations filled with lifted skirts and dancing steeped in vaginal gestures and fertility symbols.
Archaic sculptures, statuettes, amulets and figurines imbued with sacred significance show women either splay legged showing their genitals or lifting their robes to display their vaginas. Most striking about the images is the women’s sense of pride & joy in their genitalia.
Around 500BC
The olisbos, an early version of the dildo was sold by traders around the Meditteranean as a sexual refuge for lonely ladies.
Around 300AD
Penis extenders- cylindrical devices made to fit over an erect penis to make them appear larger
are mentioned in the Kama Sutra (the classic Indian sex manual) where is suggested that they
made from wood, leather, buffalo horn, copper, silver, ivory or gold (Look at our decadent and
divine collection of Kama Sutra Products)
Around 500AD
Ben Wa balls were first mentioned. Originally they were a single ball used by men to increase their pleasure during intercourse. They were either solid or hollowed out and made a ringing sound as they moved in the vagina. Later they were paired together and used by women to strengthen their pelvic floor muscles. Today Ben Wa balls have evolved to the highly sophisticated, safe and durable SmartBalls from FunFactory.
1400 AD Italian Renaissance
Ben Wa balls were first mentioned. Originally they were a single ball used by men to increase their pleasure during intercourse. They were either solid or hollowed out and made a ringing sound as they moved in the vagina. Later they were paired together and used by women to strengthen their pelvic floor muscles. Today Ben Wa balls have evolved to the highly sophisticated, safe and durable SmartBalls from FunFactory.
1400 AD Italian Renaissance
The term Dildo was coined. The word possibly comes from the Latin ‘Dilatare’ which means to open wide or from the Italian ‘to delight’. They were made of wood and leather and used with plenty of lube the most common of which was olive oil.
1869: The first vibrator, a steam driven device was invented by American doctor George Taylor.George Taylor's steam powered vibrators were perhaps the first patented mechanical vibrating devices made to stimulate female patients. The first electromechanical vibrator was designed in 1880 by a British physician, Joseph Mortimer Granville. Although his model more closely resembled what we think of as a vibrator, Granville did not support the use of vibrating devices for inducing female orgasm. He intended it to be used to massage male skeletal muscles. However, the technology proved adaptable, as the millions of women who have used massagers know.
Reference Sources:
The Technology of Orgasm: "Hysteria," the Vibrator, and Women's Sexual Satisfaction by Rachel P. Maines
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It was used to treat ‘women’s’ diseases….Symptoms included anxiety, irritability, sexual fantasies, pelvic heaviness and excessive lubrication …In other words… they were horny. In the U.S in 1873, ¾ of all the medical profession was devoted to the treatment these ‘diseases'. |
For more information on The Technology of Orgasm and the Vibrator read this excellent article http://www.bettydodson.com/org-tech.htm