Hearts of Stone: Sexual Deviants in Antiquity

[Potoooooooo]

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com...hearts-of-stone-sexual-deviants-in-antiquity/

Paraphilias change with the times—and with the materials at hand. One of the reasons that completely new forms of sexual deviancy continue to emerge, while others vanish, is the fact that, as society changes, so too do the cultural factors upon which sexual imprinting occurs. In 1975, the scholars Alex Scobie and Tony Taylor argued that a once relatively common type of paraphilia known as agalmatophilia (from the Greek agalma, statue) had by then become so obscure as to be nonexistent in the modern world. By contrast, frequent references to some men’s exclusive sexual interest in stone statues can be found throughout antiquity, especially in the records of Ancient Rome and Greece. “The early civilizations provided an abundance of sculptured human figures with which people could identify,” explain the authors:

 

[dystopian]

I don't really see how they can say it's become so obscure as to be non-existent in the modern world when we have entire documentaries devoted to people who pursue romantic relationships with inanimate dolls and popular fetish porn games that (among many other much weirder things) include depictions of people having sex with statues, people turning into statues and then having sex, or the act of sex turning them into statues.

 

[Duke Leto]

Yes but these are PLASTIC dolls. Nobody goes after the marble now.

 

[credoconsolans]

Yes but these are PLASTIC dolls. Nobody goes after the marble now.

Because plastic is more forgiving. Technology at its most compassionate.

 

[Bronzeage]

I always thought that Pygmalion was a sick fuck until I actually met Galatea. He talked about her all the time and thought he made up the whole thing. One day she was just there.

 

[bilby]

Falling in love with (or merely being sexually around by) artistic depictions of people is not something that has changed; the media are different today, but that is hardly shocking. Movies, TV, comic books and even literature were less commonplace in ancient days. But statues were commonplace objects.

That our ancestors loved statues should be no more surprising an observation than that they didn't fall in love with Sailor Moon, the blue aliens from Avatar, or pictures of Lily.

They made do with what they had - as do we.

 

[pegasus8]

Who but the Latins/Romans loved to induce and arouse their sexual fantasies vs v all manner of objects.

I forget what celebration/holiday that the Romans worshiped the bull. And we all know the utter cruelty of the Romans. One can just imagine citizens having drunken Bacchanalian parties doing all many of sexual acts with statues and other idolatry objects. The famous Roman frescos of the "Villa of Mysteries" is world renowned for its depiction of an initiation of a young woman into the Cult of Dionysus. One of the theories/interpretations is the use of a wooden or stone phallus in the Dionysian ritual. This strongly echoes Potoooo OP on sexuality,stone objects and or other objects of different material in antiquity.

The Romans admired and worshiped the bull through many rituals and through Mithras. What they did in one sexual ritual was to construct a bull made out of wood, cloth and leather that had a women, possibly a virgin, strapped inside! Unfortunately the poor women was offered for the sexual gratification of the bull in the Coliseum during this festival in front of 1000's!

So having weird sexual deviations and or fetishes with statues could be construed and interpreted as rather mild acts of antiquity. One of my favorites is when we all pitched in at the shop and bought someone a "blow-up doll" and had it mailed to their house as a gag. Hopefully the wife did not see it before it was opened. The funny part is that some guys did not say a word about their surprise dolls! But then again stone was the medium of choice and the wealthy back in antiquity. Today it is plastic and rubber.

Peace

Pegasus

 

[credoconsolans]

I forget what celebration/holiday that the Romans worshiped the bull. And we all know the utter cruelty of the Romans. One can just imagine citizens having drunken Bacchanalian parties doing all many of sexual acts with statues and other idolatry objects. The famous Roman frescos of the "Villa of Mysteries" is world renowned for its depiction of an initiation of a young woman into the Cult of Dionysus. One of the theories/interpretations is the use of a wooden or stone phallus in the Dionysian ritual. This strongly echoes Potoooo OP on sexuality,stone objects and or other objects of different material in antiquity.

The Romans admired and worshiped the bull through many rituals and through Mithras. What they did in one sexual ritual was to construct a bull made out of wood, cloth and leather that had a women, possibly a virgin, strapped inside! Unfortunately the poor women was offered for the sexual gratification of the bull in the Coliseum during this festival in front of 1000's!

So having weird sexual deviations and or fetishes with statues could be construed and interpreted as rather mild acts of antiquity. One of my favorites is when we all pitched in at the shop and bought someone a "blow-up doll" and had it mailed to their house as a gag. Hopefully the wife did not see it before it was opened. The funny part is that some guys did not say a word about their surprise dolls! But then again stone was the medium of choice and the wealthy back in antiquity. Today it is plastic and rubber.

Peace

Pegasus

Think you're buying into the Christian propaganda about ancient religions. Yes, some religions were orgiastic, but in a religious sense, not in a free-for-all sense. Yes, phallic symbols were used in the Dionysian mysteries, they think, but not "used" in the biblical sense, but as symbolic probably for fertility.

Shinto festivals in Japan in modern times still 'use' gigantic phalli in their festivals. No one accuses them of orgiastic debauchery with such items.

The frescoes in the Villa of Mysteries are assumed to depict some of the initiation rituals. The archaeologists are not sure. That is just a theory.

The Mithras religion was a male-only religion. No female virgins were debauched during its observances.

Women being debauched in the Coliseum in various means of dress-up were just typical of the 'fatal charades' popularized by several emperors where famous myths were 'brought to life' by those condemned in the arena. The woman in the cow outfit, as part of her punishment, was obviously re-enacting the Passion of Pasiphae from the King Minos stories.

 

[Perspicuo]

As once was, will be. Androids shall be the mistresses and sex teachers of the future. The practice will be equally denounced and exalted.

 

[pegasus8]

Dude I have not bought into Christian propaganda since it seem logical to educate oneself before one dies!

Again thanks for the clarification on the "Passion of Pasiphae" story concerning the horrific spectacle in the Coliseum. I did not connect the lust of Pasiphae for the great Sun God Bull to the actual Roman cruelty till you pointed it out. Good one dude. In the spirit of Joseph Campbell one can spend the rest of their pitiful lives studying the various mythologies and stories. I still did not see/understand and give myself a "pass" for missing the connection. There are no excuses as far as I am concerned. But then how many ways have we read of the same story/myth being told in different ways? Thanks god, oops, for archetypes and motifs!

Oh and Credoconsolans I totally detest our modern day three great monotheism. IMO they pollute and render the masses ignorant following superstitions and absurd dogmas. And the one that is the most insulting is Christianity! This from a once proud Christian who acknowledges the supreme absurdity of life, Existentialism!

Peace bro

Pegasus

I forget what celebration/holiday that the Romans worshiped the bull. And we all know the utter cruelty of the Romans. One can just imagine citizens having drunken Bacchanalian parties doing all many of sexual acts with statues and other idolatry objects. The famous Roman frescos of the "Villa of Mysteries" is world renowned for its depiction of an initiation of a young woman into the Cult of Dionysus. One of the theories/interpretations is the use of a wooden or stone phallus in the Dionysian ritual. This strongly echoes Potoooo OP on sexuality,stone objects and or other objects of different material in antiquity.

The Romans admired and worshiped the bull through many rituals and through Mithras. What they did in one sexual ritual was to construct a bull made out of wood, cloth and leather that had a women, possibly a virgin, strapped inside! Unfortunately the poor women was offered for the sexual gratification of the bull in the Coliseum during this festival in front of 1000's!

So having weird sexual deviations and or fetishes with statues could be construed and interpreted as rather mild acts of antiquity. One of my favorites is when we all pitched in at the shop and bought someone a "blow-up doll" and had it mailed to their house as a gag. Hopefully the wife did not see it before it was opened. The funny part is that some guys did not say a word about their surprise dolls! But then again stone was the medium of choice and the wealthy back in antiquity. Today it is plastic and rubber.

Peace

Pegasus

Think you're buying into the Christian propaganda about ancient religions. Yes, some religions were orgiastic, but in a religious sense, not in a free-for-all sense. Yes, phallic symbols were used in the Dionysian mysteries, they think, but not "used" in the biblical sense, but as symbolic probably for fertility.

Shinto festivals in Japan in modern times still 'use' gigantic phalli in their festivals. No one accuses them of orgiastic debauchery with such items.

The frescoes in the Villa of Mysteries are assumed to depict some of the initiation rituals. The archaeologists are not sure. That is just a theory.

The Mithras religion was a male-only religion. No female virgins were debauched during its observances.

Women being debauched in the Coliseum in various means of dress-up were just typical of the 'fatal charades' popularized by several emperors where famous myths were 'brought to life' by those condemned in the arena. The woman in the cow outfit, as part of her punishment, was obviously re-enacting the Passion of Pasiphae from the King Minos stories.