Inventor Of The Dildo
While most experts agree that Joseph Mortimer Granville invented the modern vibrator in the 1880s, the inventor of the dildo is unknown. It’s easier to assume that the inventor of the first dildo is lost to history. There’s evidence that dildos were used even in ancient times. A dildo dating back to the Ice Age, 28,000 years ago, was found in a German cave.
Since then, the dildo has been utilized throughout history.
Dildo Use Throughout History
In ancient civilizations, people used different objects as dildos and created them out of different materials.
Ancient Times
One ancient civilization that experimented a lot with dildos was ancient Egypt.
There are Egyptian paintings, dating back to 3,000 BC that portray women wearing phallic objects around their waists. It’s believed that this was a way of paying tribute to Osiris.
There’s also a legend that Queen Cleopatra used a hollow gourd and filled it with live bees. As the bees flew around inside the gourd and hit the walls, it created a vibrating sensation. This is considered to be the first primitive form of a vibrator.
In ancient Greece, it was documented that people used olisboi, which were essentially dildos made of polished leather that was stuffed with the material. The olisboi were an important aspect of the Greek culture as the ancient Greek people believed that the lack of sperm in men or sex in women could cause “wandering uterus” or hysteria.
Hence, women helped themselves with olisboi, especially when their male partners were absent for extended periods such as when they fought in a war. The word dildo was derived from the word “diletto”, which is an Italian term.
Evidence of dildo use exists in ancient texts (especially in the works dealing with the Arabian Nights) in which various fruits, vegetables and other penis-like objects were used as a dildo.
Renaissance, Early Modern Era & Modern Era
During the Renaissance, the dildo became a form of art. During those times, it was typical for the upper-middle class to have custom-made dildos made of ivory, gold, silver and other precious materials.
In the 17th century England, the men feared that women might turn to dildos instead of having partners so a few laws were passed concerning the subject of dildos. Around the same time, Japan had a different attitude and they were more open to the idea of dildos. In fact, erotic novels became popular during the time, which were called shunga. Many of the shunga tales depicted women playing with dildos.
Information concerning the use of the dildo during the early American time period is limited. One reason for this were the Comstock Laws, which were enforced in the 1800s. The law prohibited the sale of “rubber dilator” devices. Of course, the sale and use of dildos went “underground”.
In the 1930s and 1940s, the use of dildos in England was considered “okay”. Consequently, public media sent messages that “dildos might be fun, but the real thing is superior”.
It was during the 1960s that the dildo market exploded. This is mainly because the general public changed their opinion of dildos, seeing masturbation in women as “normal”. The dildo also in some way became a symbol of sexual liberation for women.
In the 1970s, Betty Dodson and Dell Williams entered the dildo market and produced new forms of dildos. They popularized the use of dildos that didn’t look like a penis. Instead, they introduced different types of dildos with different shapes, colors and materials. They were also responsible for introducing a smooth, colorful dildo made of silicon, which is popular today.
Conclusion
Today, there seem to be numerous types of a dildo. Some of these toys have become more advanced in that they are both a dildo and a vibrator. Bear in mind that a dildo is not necessarily the same as a vibrator.
Sexual pleasure is part of being human. The long history of a dildo serves as evidence to prove this point. We found evidence that people have been using dildos since the ice ages. Today, the dildo is becoming more and more popular as the stigma surrounding it has been removed.