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THREE ESSAYS ON THE POWERS
OF REPRODUCTION.
[Illustration: _Frontispiece._
VOTIVE COLUMNS
Of the Ancient Oscans.]
Aphrodisiacs and Anti-Aphrodisiacs:
THREE ESSAYS ON THE POWERS OF
REPRODUCTION;
WITH SOME ACCOUNT OF THE JUDICIAL "CONGRESS"
AS PRACTISED IN FRANCE DURING THE
SEVENTEENTH CENTURY.
BY JOHN DAVENPORT.
_Ubi stimulus, ibi fluxus._--HIPPOCRATES.
LONDON:
PRIVATELY PRINTED.
1869.
PREFACE.
The reproductive powers of Nature were regarded by the nations of remote
antiquity with an awe and reverence so great, as to form an object of
worship, under a symbol, of all others the most significant,--the
_Phallus_; and thus was founded a religion, of which the traces exist to
this day, not in Asia only, but even in Europe itself.
That scarcely any notices of this worship should appear in modern works,
except in the erudite pages of a few antiquarians may be accounted for
by considering the difference of opinion between the ancients and the
moderns as to what constitutes--modesty; the former being unable to see
any moral turpitude in actions they regarded was the designs of nature,
while the latter, by their over-strained notions of delicacy, render
themselves, in some degree at least, obnoxious to the charge that, in
proportion as manners becomes corrupt, language becomes more
guarded,--modesty, when banished from the heart, taking refuge on the
lips.
To supply, to some extent, this lacuna in our popular literature has
been the object of the present work, in which, it is hoped, may be found
much curious and interesting physiological information, interspersed
with _recherché_ and festivous anecdotes.
The text is illustrated by a few plates, drawn from antiquarian sources.
J. D.
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
NOTE.--_As it was found impossible always to insert the illustrations
opposite the explanatory text, the following List will assist the reader
to those pages which explain the objects represented_:--
Plate Described on page
FRONTISPIECE, INSCRIBED VOTIVE COLUMNS Facing title
Of small size and of great antiquity; in use amongst
the Oscan people, who were finally subjugated by
the Sabines.
I. _Figure_ 1, EGYPTIAN PHALLUS 1, 2, 3
From "Recueil d'Antiquités Egyptiennes, &c., par
le Comte de Caylus."
" 2, DO., different view 1, 2, 3
" 3, Two views of a double figure 1, 2, 3
" 4, ROMAN PRIAPUS over a baker's door at Pompeii 11
From "Musée secret de Naples."
II. _Figure_ 1, LINGHAM 1, 2, 3
From M. Sonnerat's "Voyage aux Indes Orientales."
" 2, PAN'S HEAD 9, 10
From the Collection of Antiquities at Pompeii, _vide_
"Musée secret de Naples."
III. _Figure_ 1, LEADEN PHALLUS 5
From the "Forgeais Collection of Plombs Historiques."
" 2, DITTO, a different view 5
" 3, DITTO ditto 5
" 4, DITTO ditto 5
IV. _Figure_ 1, ROUND TOWER 5, 6, 7
From O'Brien's "History of the Round Towers of
Ireland."
" 2, THREE-HEADED OSIRIS 7, 8, 9
From the Comte de Caylus' "Recueil d'Antiquités
Egyptiennes," &c.
V. _Figure_ 1, CROSS 12, 13, 14
From Higgin's "Anacalypsis."
" 2, Another example 12, 13, 14
From the same work.
" 3, Another example 12, 13, 14
From the same work.
" 4, Another example 12, 13, 14
From the same work.
VI. _Figure_ 1, EX VOTO, in silver 18, 19, 20
From the British Museum copy of R. Payne Knight's
"History of the Worship of Priapus."
" 2, DUDAÏM or MANDRAKE 67, 70, 71, 74
From Dr. Kitto's "Cyclopædia of Biblical Literature."
VII. _Figure_ 1, FIBULA 142, 3
From Holyday's "Juvenal."
" 2, Another example of a different construction 142, 3
CONTENTS.
ESSAY I.
Page
ANCIENT PHALLIC WORSHIP:
Phallic Worship the most ancient and general 1-2
Phallic Worship found to exist in America 2
Indian Trimourti or Trinity 3
Lingham 3
Yoni or Cteis, and Pulleiar 4
Taly, Anecdote of the 4
Leaden Phalli found in the river Rhône 5
Round Towers in Ireland--Phallic temples 6
The May-Pole a relic of phallic worship 6
Phallus held in reverence by the Jews--King David 6
Le prerogativi de' Testicoli (note) 6
An Egyptian Phallic Oath 8
Ancient Welsh Phallic Law 8
London Costermongers' Oath "By my taters" 9
Bembo (Cardinal), his saying (note) 10
Priapus, derivation of the word 10
Priapus, how reverenced by Roman women 10
Priapus, decline of his worship 11
The Cross [Symbol: Tau] known to the Buddhists and the Lama
of Thibet 12
Cross (the) regarded by the Ancients as the emblem of fruitfulness 12
Rev. Mr. Maurice quoted 12
The Tau, Crux-Ansata, or triple Phallus 14
Remains of Phallic Worship in Europe 14
Lampsacus, the Birth-place of the deity Priapus (note) 14
Saint Foutin 14
The Phallus of Foutin at Embrun--the holy vinegar 16
Curious Phallic Customs 16-17
Godfrey de Bouillon and the Holy prepuce 18
Il santo-membro 18
Sir W. Hamilton's account of the Worship paid to Saints Cosmo
and Damianus 18
_Ex votos_ 18
ESSAY II.
ANAPHRODISIA, OR ABSENCE OF THE PRODUCTIVE POWER:
Impotency, three kinds of, according to the Canon Law 21
Impotency, Causes of, proper to Men 21
Impotency, Causes of, proper to Women 21
Sterility and its Causes 21
Morgagni quoted 21
Clitoris, its length sometimes prevents the sexual
union--case quoted by Sir Everard Home 24-25
Columbus, Martial, Haller, Juvenal, and Ariosto quoted 25-26
Impotency, Moral Causes of 28-29
Montaigne's Advice 32
Impotency caused by too great warmth of Clothing--Hunter's
Opinion 33
Point-Tying--Voltaire's Pucelle d'Orléans quoted 35
Point-Tying known to the Ancients--instances quoted 37-38
Point-Tying among the Moderns recognised by James I. 40
Counter-Charm to Point-Tying 41
Agreeable Mode of curing such Enchantment 42
Case of Point-Tying related by Venette 43
Montaigne's curious Story 44
Judicial Congress in Cases of alleged Impotency 47
Manner of conducting the Congress 48
Judicial Congress originated with the Church 52
Judicial Congress practised in France during the 16th and
17th Centuries--Forbidden in 1677 52
Boileau quoted 55-56
Cases determined by the Judicial Congress 54-58
Willick, Dr., his Remarks and Advice upon the Sexual
Intercourse 58-63
ESSAY III.
APHRODISIACS AND ANTI-APHRODISIACS:
The Mandrake or Dudaïm the most ancient aphrodisiac 66
Rachel and Leah 66
Solomon's Song 67
Pliny the Elder quoted 68
Sappho's love for Phaon accounted for 66
Superstitious ideas respecting the mandrake during the
Middle Ages 69
The Knights Templars accused of adoring it 69
Mandrake, Weir's description of it 70
Mandrake under the name of Mandragora used as a charm 70
Macchiavelli's Comedy of La Mandragora and Voltaire's
account of it 71
Love potions, Venetian law against them 72
Richard III. accuses Lady Grey of witchcraft 72
Maundrell's account of the Dudaïm 73
Singular Aphrodisiac used by the Amazons 75
Philters, or love potions used by the ancients 75
Hippomanes, wonderful powers of, as an aphrodisiac 79
Recipes for love-potions 80
Fish an aphrodisiac--Hecquet's anecdote 86
Mollusca, truffles and mushrooms used as aphrodisiacal 88
George IV.'s appreciation of truffles (note) 88
Effect of truffles described by a lady 89
Latin epigram on the vices of the monks 90
_Naïveté_ of a monk on the score of adultery 91
Curious Quatrain in the Church of St. Hyacinth 91
Madame Du Barri's secret 93
Do., Do., description of (note) 93
Tablettes de _Magnanimité_--Poudre de joie--Seraglio
Pastilles 94
Musk, Cantharides--effects of the latter 96
Cardinal Dubois' Account of a Love-Potion 98
Caricature upon Dubois (note) 98
Indian Bang 104
Stimulating Powers of Odours 106
Cabanis quoted 107
D'Obsonville quoted 108
Portable Gold--Shakespeare quoted 109-110
Bouchard's Account of Aphrodisiacal Charms 111
Flagellation--Graham's Celestial Bed--Lady Hamilton--Lord
Nelson, &c. 121-126
Burton quoted 126
ANTI-APHRODISIACS:
Refrigerants--Recommendation of Plato and Aristotle 128-129
Sir Thos. Brown quoted 130
Origen 130
Camphor an anti-aphrodisiac 134
Coffee an anti-aphrodisiac--Abernethey's saying (note) 137
Infibulation, Holyday quoted 141-144
Bernasco Padlocks 144
Voltaire's poem of the Cadenas 146
Rabelais' anti-aphrodisiacal remedies 147-154
[Illustration: PLATE I., EGYPTIAN PHALLI. AND Pompeian House--sign.]
ESSAY I.
REMARKS UPON THE SYMBOLS OF THE
REPRODUCTIVE POWERS.
From the investigations and researches of the learned, there appears to
be no doubt but that the most ancient of all superstitions was that in
which Nature was contemplated chiefly under the attribute or property of
fecundity; the symbols of the reproductive power being those under which
its prolific potencies were exhibited. It is not because modern
fastidiousness affects to consider those symbols as indecent, and even
obscene, that we should therefore suppose them to have been so regarded
by the ancients: on the contrary, the view of them awakened no impure
ideas in the minds of the latter, being regarded by them as the most
sacred objects of worship. The ancients, indeed, did not look upon the
pleasures of love with the same eye as the moderns do; the tender union
of the sexes excited their veneration, because religion appeared to
consecrate it, inasmuch as their mythology presented to them all Olympus
as more occupied with amatory delights than with the government of the
universe.
The reflecting men of those times, more simple, but, it must be
confessed, more profound, than those of our own day, could not see any
moral turpitude in actions regarded by them as the design of nature, and
as the acme of felicity. For this reason it is that we find not only
ancient writers expressing themselves freely upon subjects regarded by
us as indecent, but even sculptors and painters equally unrestrained in
this particular.
The statesman took advantage of these religious impressions: whatever
tended to increase population being held in honour. Those images and
Priapi so frequently found in the temples of the ancients, and even in
their houses, and which we consider as objects of indecent lewdness,
were, in their eyes, but so many sacred motives exciting them to
propagate their species.
In order to represent by a physical object the reproductive power of the
sun in spring-time, as well as the action of that power on all sentient
beings, the ancients adopted that symbol of the male gender which the
Greeks, who derive it from the Egyptians, called--Phallus.[1] This
worship was so general as to have spread itself over a large portion of
the habitable globe, for it flourished for many ages in Egypt and Syria,
Persia, Asia Minor, Greece and Italy: it was, and still is, in vigour in
India and many parts of Africa, and was even found in America on its
discovery by the Spaniards. Thus Garcilaso de la Vega informs us[2]
that, in the public squares of Panuco (a Mexican town), _bas-reliefs_
were found which, like those of India, represented, in various ways the
sexual union; while at Tlascala, another town of that country, the
reproductive act was worshipped under the joint symbol of the generative
organs, male and female.
A more surprising fact is, that this worship has, as will be shewn
hereafter, been perpetuated to a very late date, among the Christians of
Europe.
In its origin, the Phallus or emblem of the generative and procreative
powers of nature appears to have been of a very simple and inoffensive
character--although it was afterwards made subservient to the grossest
and most superstitious purposes.
In India this worship is everywhere to be found accompanying the triune
God, called by the Hindoos, _Trimourti_ or _Trinity_, and the
significant form of the single obelisk or pillar called the _Linga_ or
_Lingham_;[3] and it should be observed, in justice to the Hindoos that
it is some comparative and negative praise to them, that this emblem,
under which they express the éléments and operations of nature is not
externally indecorous. Unlike the abominable realities of Egypt, Greece,
and Rome, we see this Indian phallic emblem in the Hindoo religious
exhibitions, without offence, nor know, until information be extorted,
that we are contemplating a symbol whose prototype is obscene.[4]
[Illustration: PLATE II., Fig 1. Lingham, Fig 2. Pan's head.]
Besides the Lingham, the equally significant _Yoni_ or _Cteis_ is to be
seen, being the female organ of generation. It is sometimes single,
often in conjunction, for the Indians, believing that the emblem of
fecundity might be rendered more energetic by combining the organs of
both sexes, did so unite them, giving to this double symbol the name of
_Pulleiar_, confounded by some writers with the Lingham itself. This
pulleiar is highly venerated by the sectarian worshippers of Siva (the
third god of the Trimourti), who hang it round their neck, as a charm or
amulet, or enclosing it in a small box, fasten it upon their arm. The
Indians have also a little jewel called _taly_, worn, in like manner, by
females round their necks as a charm. It is presented to them on their
wedding day by their husbands, who receive it from the hands of the
Brahmins. Upon these jewels is engraved the representation, either of
the Lingham or of the Pulleiar. The following anecdote connected with
this custom is given by M. Sonnerat.[5]
"A Capuchin missionary had a serious dispute with the
Jesuits residing at Pondicherry, which was referred for
decision to the judicial courts. The disciples of Loyola,
who can be toleration itself when toleration furthers their
crafty and ambitious views, had declined all interference
with the above custom. M. Tournon, the Pope's legate
apostolic, who regarded the matter as one not to be trifled
with, and with whom, moreover, the Jesuits were no
favourites, strictly prohibited the _taly_, enjoining all
female converts to substitute in its place either a cross or
a medal of the Virgin. The Indian women, strongly attached
to their ancient customs, refused obedience. The
missionaries, apprehensive of losing the fruits of their
zealous labours, and seeing the number of their neophytes
daily diminishing, entered into a compromise by adopting a
_mezzo-termine_ with the females in question, and it was
agreed that a Cross should be engraved upon the _taly_, an
arrangement by which the symbol of Christian salvation was
coupled with that of the male and female _pudenda_."
The deep and enthusiastic veneration felt by the Hindoos for this
worship is naturally explained by their intense anxiety and desire for
having children who might perform those ceremonies to their _manes_
which they firmly and piously believe will have the effect of mitigating
their punishment in the world to come. They worship the _Lingham_,
therefore, for the sake of having progeny, and husbands, whose wives are
barren, send them to adore that symbol, and, if report be true, the
ladies take especial care not to disappoint the wish of their dear
spouses.
It is probable that the introduction of this worship is due to the
Indians who founded the sect of Siva, imagining, as they no doubt did,
that the most effectual means of propagating it would be by presenting
their deity under the form of that organ by which the reproduction of
the human race is effected.
Nothing can be a greater proof of the high antiquity of the Indians than
this worship, it being certain that the Egyptians did not establish it,
as well as the dogma of the Metempsychosis, among themselves, until
after they had travelled in India.
Phalli, usually in lead, have been even found in the river Rhône. These
were most likely the signs and tokens belonging to some secret society
probably of a licentious character. Similar ones are in the _Forgeais_
collection, and were engraved in the _Plombs Historiés_ of that
antiquarian.[6]
[Illustration: PLATE III., Figs. 1-4, PHALLUS EMBLEM, found in the
Rhône, From the Forgeais Collection.]
According to an ingenious writer,[7] who is of opinion that the Indians
sent, at a very remote period, colonists to Ireland, the round towers,
so numerous in that island, are no other than ancient Phallic temples
erected in honour of the fructifying power of nature emanating, as it
was supposed to do, from the sun, under the name of Sol, Phœbus,
Apollo, Abad, or Budh.[8]
Alluding to these towers, Mr O'Brien observes, "the eastern votaries,
suiting the action to the idea, and that their vivid imaginations might
be still more enlivened by the very _form_ of the _temple_, actually
constructed its architecture after the model of the _membrum virile_,
which, obscenity apart, is the divinity-formed and indispensable medium
selected by God himself for human propagation and sexual prolificacy."
There is every reason to believe that our _May-pole_ is a relic of the
ancient Phallic worship.
[Illustration: PLATE IV., Fig. 1. ROUND TOWER AT KLONDALKIN, IRELAND.,
Fig. 2. THREE HEADED OSIRIS.]
The manners of the ancient Hebrews seem to have differed little, if at
all, in this respect, from those of the nations surrounding them: thus,
David, dancing with all his might before the ark, lifted up his ephod
and exhibited his nakedness to "the eyes of the handmaids of his
servants." No blame is attached to the king for such gross indecency
during a public and religious ceremony; while Michal, his wife, was
punished with barrenness, for expressing her disapprobation of his
conduct.[9]
This example attests the great respect entertained by the Hebrews for
the organs of generation;[10] but we have a further proof of this
reverence for them in the fact that, when taking a solemn oath, they
placed their hand upon them in token of its inviolability: When Abraham,
addressing "his oldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he
had," is made to say, "Put I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh, and I
will make thee swear, by the Lord, the God of Heaven, and the God of the
earth that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son, of the daughters of
the Canaanites:"[11] and when Jacob, at the point of death, called his
son Joseph, and said unto him, "If now I have found grace in thy sight,
put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly
with me; bury me not, I pray thee, in Egypt,"[12] the Hebrew text has
been incorrectly translated in both these instances; for, according to
learned commentators, it is not the _thigh_, but the _phallus_ that is
meant; such tact having, in the opinion of the Rabbins, been introduced
for the purpose of doing honour to circumcision.
This custom obtains in Egypt, even in our own day, for many travellers
assert that the Arabs, when desirous of saluting or making a promise
with great solemnity, place their hand upon the part in question. A case
in point is related in a letter of the Adjutant-General Julian to a
member of the Institute of Egypt.[13] An Egyptian, who had been arrested
as a spy, and brought before the general, finding that all his
asservations of innocence could not be understood "leva sa chemise
bleue, et prenant son phallus à la poignée, resta un moment dans
l'attitude théatrale d'un dieu jurant par le Styx. Sa physionomie
semblait me dire: _Après la serment terrible que je fais pour vous
prouver mon innocence, osez-vous en douter?_ Son geste me rappela que du
tems d'Abraham on jurait vérité en portant la main aux organes de la
génération." The vast antiquity of this custom among the ancient
Egyptians is proved by figure 2, Plate IV. This figure, which is copied
from Caylus, Vol. VI., Plate I., figure 4, represents Osiris grasping
his phallus while taking an oath.
A custom greatly resembling this manner of swearing existed also in the
north of Europe, as is proved by an ancient law still extant: thus, one
of the articles of the Welsh laws enacted by _Hoel the Good_, provides
that, in cases of rape, if the woman wishes to prosecute the offender,
she must, when swearing to the identity of the criminal, lay her right
hand upon the relics of the saints and grasp with her left one, the
peccant member of the party accused.[14]
It may be mentioned, _en passant_, that the low Irish in Dublin, and the
London costermongers, often make use of an expression which, whether
connected or not with the custom above noted, offers for our
consideration a curious coincidence at least. If extra force is to
accompany an assertion, it is very common for the vulgar to say in
conclusion: "_S'elp my taters!_" or "_So help me_ TESTES"--equal to
saying, "_I swear by my member_." That the word "taters" is a corruption
of, and vulgarism for, "_testes_" we see very readily in the expression
"_strain my taters_"--_i.e._, to pass urine or make water.
The Greeks had consecrated the same symbols of universal fecundity in
their mysteries, the phallus and the cteis being publicly exhibited in
the sanctuary of Eleusis. The _membrum virile_ or _active_ principle of
generation was carried to the temple of Bacchus and there crowned with a
garland by one of the most respectable matrons of the town or city. The
Egyptian Osiris, and the female _pudenda_, or symbol of the _passive_
principle of generation were, in like manner, carried in procession to
the temple of Libera or Proserpine.
The worship of Priapus among the Romans was derived from the Egyptians,
who, under the form of Apis, the sacred Bull, worshipped the generative
power of nature; and, as the syllable _pri_ or _pre_ signifies, in the
Oriental tongue, _principle_, production, or natural or original source,
the word _Priapus_ may be translated _principle of production_ or of
_fecundation of Apis_. The same symbol also bore among the Romans the
names of _Tutunus_, _Mutinus_, and _Fascinum_. Among the many places
where this divinity was worshipped, Lampsacus,[15] in Asia Minor, was
the most noted on account of the obscene rites there practised. The
Priapi were of different forms; some having only a human head and the
Phallus; some with the head of Pan or of a faun--that is, with the head
and ears of a goat.[16] Others, with their indecent attribute, were
placed in the public roads, and were then confounded with the divinities
_Mercury_ and _Terminus_, who presided over boundaries. Scaliger says
that he saw at Rome, in the palace of a cardinal,[17] a similar statue,
whose phallus had served as a sign post.[18] All the human part of these
Priapi were invariably painted red.[19]
When furnished with arms, which he was when representing Terminus,
Priapus held in one hand a reaping hook, and, like Osiris, grasped with
the other the characteristic feature of his divinity, which was always
of a monstrous size and in a state of energy.
In the towns, Priapus had public chapels, whither such devotees as were
suffering from maladies connected with his attributes repaired for the
purpose of offering to him _ex-votos_ representing the parts afflicted;
these ex-votos being sometimes paintings and, at others, little figures
made of wax or of wood, and occasionally, even of marble.
Females as superstitious, as they were lascivious, might be seen
offering in public to Priapus, as many garlands as they had had lovers.
These they would hang upon the enormous phallus of the idol, which was
often hidden from sight by the number suspended by only one woman.
Others offered to the god as many phalli, made of the wood of the willow
tree, as they had vanquished men in a single night.
St. Augustine informs us that it was considered by the Roman ladies as a
very proper and pious custom to require young brides to seat themselves
upon the monstrous and obscene member of Priapus: and Lactantius says,
"Shall I speak of that _Mutinus_, upon the extremity of which brides are
accustomed to seat themselves in order that the god may appear to have
been the first to receive the sacrifice of their modesty?"[20]
These facts prove that the worship of Priapus had greatly degenerated
with the Romans, since, losing sight altogether of the object typified,
they attach themselves to the symbol alone, in which they could see only
what was indecent; and hence religion became a pretext for
libertinism.[21]
Respected so long as the Roman manners preserved their pristine
simplicity, but degraded[22] and vilified in proportion as the morals of
that people became corrupted, the very sanctuary itself of Priapus
failed to protect him from obloquy and ridicule. Christian writers added
their indignant invectives to the biting sarcasms of the poets, and the
worship of Priapus would have been annihilated had not superstition and
the force of habit, that most indestructible of all human affections,
come to the rescue. These two powerful levers of mankind triumphed over
reason and Christianity, and succeeded, notwithstanding the strenuous
and continued efforts of the latter, in maintaining in some degree the
worship of that filthy deity; for the Christian priests, while opposing
_à l'outrance_, the superstitions and impure practices already adverted
to, did not so do, as regarded the other customs equally repugnant to
decency and true religion. Less austere to these, and consulting their
own interests, they turned to their profit the ancient worship
established by the Romans and strengthened by habit: they appropriated
to themselves what they could not destroy, and, in order to attract to
their side the votaries of Priapus, they made a Christian of him.
But besides the Lingham of the Indians, the Phallus of the Greeks, and
the Priapus of the Romans, the Cross ([Symbol: Tau]), although generally
thought to be exclusively emblematical of eternal life, has also an
account of its fancied similarity to the _membrum virile_, been
considered by many as typical of the reproductive powers of nature. It
was known as such to the Indians, being as common in their country as in
Egypt or in Europe.[23] "Let not the piety of the Catholic Christian,"
says the Rev. Mr. Maurice, "be offended at the preceding assertion that
the Cross was one of the most usual symbols among the hieroglyphics of
Egypt and India. Equally honoured in the Gentile and the world, this
Christian emblem of universal nature, of that world to whose four
corners its diverging radii pointed, decorated the hands of most of the
sculptured images in the former country (Egypt), and the latter (India)
stamped its form upon the most majestic of the shrines of their
deities."
[Illustration: PLATE V., Figs. 1-3, THREE HEADED OSIRIS.]
It is well known that the cross was regarded by the ancient Egyptians as
the emblem of fruitfulness. Thus the Rev. Mr. Maurice describes a
statue bearing a kind, of cross in its hand as the symbol of fertility,
or, in other words, of the procreative and generative powers.[24] The
cross [Symbol: Tau] so common upon Egyptian monuments was known to the
Buddhists and to the Lama of Thibet 700 years before Christ. The Lama
takes his name from the _Lamah_, which is an object of profound
veneration with his followers: "Cequi est remarquable," says M. Avril,
"c'est que le grand prêtre des Tartares porte le nom de Lama, qui, en
langue Tartare, désigne _la Croix_, et les Bogdoi qui conquirent la
Chine en 1664, et qui sont soumis au Dulai-Lama dans les choses de la
religion, ont toujours des croix sur eux, qu'ils appalent _lamas_."[25]
The letter _Tau_ [Symbol: Tau], being the last one of the ancient
alphabets, was made to typify, not only the end, boundary, or terminus
of districts, but also the generative power of the eternal
transmigratory life, and was used indiscriminately with the Phallus; it
was, in fact, the Phallus.[26] Speaking of this emblem, Payne Knight
observes: "One of the most remarkable of those symbols of generation is
a cross in the form of the letter [Symbol: Tau], which thus served as
the emblem of _creation_ and _generation_ before the church adopted it
as the sign of salvation, a lucky coincidence of ideas which, without
doubt, facilitated the reception of it among the faithful."[27] And
again, "the male organs of generation are sometimes represented by signs
of the same sort, which might properly be called symbols of symbols. One
of the most remarkable of these is the Cross in the form of the letter
[Symbol: Tau], which thus served as the emblem of creation and
generation."[28]
The famous _Crux ansata_[29] which may be seen on all the monuments of
Egypt is what is alluded to by the Prophet Ezekiel,[30] and is affirmed
by the learned L. A. Crozius to be nothing else than the triple Phallus
mentioned by Plutarch.[31]
We shall now proceed to notice a few of the traces of the phallic
worship as were still to be found lingering in some parts of Europe so
late as the 18th century, a tenacity of existence by no means surprising
if it be considered that of all the human affections none is more
dangerous to oppose, none more difficult to eradicate, than habit.
Accordingly it will be found that the above superstition has maintained
itself in countries where Christianity was already established, and
that, bidding defiance to the severe precepts of that pure faith, it
successfully resisted for at least seventeen centuries every effort made
to extirpate it by the Christian clergy backed by the civil power. Its
triumph was, however, by no means complete, for this worship was
constrained to yield to circumstances and to use a disguise by adopting
the forms and designations peculiar to Christianity, a mask which on the
other hand, favoured not a little, its preservation.
Hence it was that the names of certain legendary saints were given to
the ancient God of Lampsacus,[32] the said names having some relation
either to the act over which that deity presided, or to his most
prominent attributes.
The first bishop of Lyon was honoured throughout Provence, Languedoc,
and the Lyonnais as a saint, and as his name happened to be Pothin,
Photin, or Fotin, commonly pronounced by the low orders _Foutin_, these
people, who are very apt to judge of the nature of things by the sound
of the words by which they are designated, thought St. Foutin worthy of
replacing Saint Priapus, and accordingly conferred upon him the
prerogatives of his predecessor.
Saint _Foutin de Varailles_ had particular reverence paid to him in
Provence, nor is this to be wondered at, since the power was attributed
to him of rendering barren women fruitful, stimulating flagging
husbands, and curing their secret maladies. It was consequently the
custom to lay upon his altar, as was formerly done on that of the god
Priapus, small votive offerings, made of wax, and representing the weak
or otherwise afflicted parts. Sanci says, "To this saint are offered
waxen models of the _pudenda_ of both sexes. They are strewn in great
numbers over the floor of the chapel, and should a gust of wind cause
them to rustle against one another, it occasioned a serious interruption
to the devotions paid to the saint. I was very much scandalized,"
continues he, "when, passing through the town, I found the name of
_Foutin_ very common among the men. My landlord's daughter had for
godmother a young lady whose name was _Foutine_."
The same saint was similarly honoured at Embrun. When the Protestants
took that town in 1585, they found, among the relics of the principal
church, the _Phallus_ of St. Foutin. The devotees of that town, in
imitation of pagan ones, made libations to this obscene idol. They
poured wine over the extremity of the Phallus, which was dyed red by it.
This wine being afterwards collected and allowed to turn sour, was
called _the holy vinegar_, and, according to the author from whom this
account is taken,[33] was applied by women to a most extraordinary
purpose; but what that purpose was we are not informed, and therefore
can only guess it.
At Orange there was also a phallus much venerated by the inhabitants of
that town. Larger than the one at Embrun, it was, moreover, covered with
leather, and furnished with its appendages. When, in 1562, the
protestants destroyed the church of St. Eutropius, in this town, they
seized the enormous Phallus and burned it in the market place. Similar
Phalli were to be found at Poligny, Vendre in the Bourbonnais, and at
Auxerre.
The inhabitants of Puy-en-Velay even to this day speak of their St.
_Foustin_ who, in times not far remote from our own, was invoked by
barren women who, under the idea of giving greater efficacy to their
prayers, scraped the phallus of the saint, and, mixing the particles so
abraded in water, devoutly swallowed them, in the hope of thereby being
rendered fruitful.
It is no doubt to one of these phallic saints that Count de Gebelin
refers when, speaking of the goat _Mendés_, he says: "I have read
somewhere that in the south of France there existed not long ago a
custom resembling the one mentioned; the women of that part of the
country devoutly frequented a temple containing a statue of the saint,
and which statue they embraced, expecting that their barrenness would be
removed by the operation."[34]
In the neighbourhood of Brest stood the chapel of the famous Saint
Guignole, or Guingalais, whose Phallic symbol consisted of a long wooden
beam which passed right through the body of the saint, and the fore-part
of which was strikingly characteristic. The devotees of this place, like
those of Puy-en-Velay, most devoutly rasped the extremity of this
miraculous symbol for the purpose of drinking the scrapings mixed with
water as an antidote against sterility, and when by the frequent
repetition of this operation, the beam was worn away, a blow with a
mallet in the rear of the saint propelled it immediately in front. Thus,
although it was being continually scraped, it appeared never to
diminish, a miracle due exclusively to the mallet.
Antwerp was the Lampsacus of Belgium, Priapus being the tutelary god of
that city. _Ters_ was the name given to him by the inhabitants who held
this divinity in the greatest veneration. Females were accustomed to
invoke him on the most trivial occasions, a custom which Goropius
informs us continued as late as the 16th century.[35]
So inveterate was this superstition that Godefrey de Bouillon, marquis
of that city, the illustrious leader of the first crusade, in order to
eradicate it, or to replace it by the ceremonies of the Christian
church, sent to Antwerp, from Jerusalem, as a present of inestimable
value, the _foreskin of Jesus Christ_.[36] This precious relic, however,
found but little favour with the Belgian ladies, and utterly failed to
supersede their beloved _Fascinum_.[37]
In the kingdom of Naples, in the town of Trani, the capital of the
province of that name, there was carried in procession, during the
Carnival, an old wooden statue representing an entire Priapus, in the
ancient proportions; that is to say, that the distinguishing
characteristic of that god was very disproportioned to the rest of the
idol's body, reaching, as it did, to the height of his chin. The people
called this figure _il Santo Membro_, the holy member. This ancient
ceremony, evidently a remains of the feasts of Bacchus, called by the
Greeks _Dyonysiacs_, and by the Romans _Liberalia_, existed as late as
the commencement of the 18th century, when it was abolished by Joseph
Davanzati, archbishop of that town.
Sir W. Hamilton's account of the worship paid to St. Cosmo and St.
Damianus is very curious. "On the 27th September, at Isernia, one of the
most ancient cities of the kingdom of Naples, situated in the province
called the Contado di Molise, and adjoining the Aruzzo, an annual fair
is held which lasts three days. On one of the days of the fair the
relics of Sts. Cosmo and Damianus are exposed. In the city and at the
fair, _ex-votos_ of wax representing the male parts of generation, of
various dimensions, sometimes even of the length of a palm, are publicly
exposed for sale. There was also waxen vows that represent other parts
of the body mixed with them, but of those there are few in comparison of
the number of the Priapi."
[Illustration: PLATE VI., Fig. 1, SILVER EX VOTO, Fig. 2. DUDAIM.]
The distributors of these vows carry a basket full of them in one hand,
and hold a plate in the other, to receive the money, crying out, "Saints
Cosmo and Damianus!" If you ask the price of one, the answer is, "_più
ci metti, più meriti_;" the more you give, the more the merit. The vows
are chiefly presented by the female sex, and they are seldom such as
represent legs, arms, &c., but most commonly the male parts of
generation. The person who was at the _féte_, in the year 1780, and who
gave me this account (the authenticity of which has since been confirmed
to me by the governer of Isernia) told me also that he heard a woman
say, at the time she presented a vow, "_Santo Cosmo, benedetto, cosi lo
voglio_." Blessed St. Cosmo, "let it be like this!" The vow is never
presented without being accompanied by a piece of money, and is always
kissed by the devotee at the moment of presentation.[38]
But, as might naturally be expected, this does not suffice to fructify
barren women; and consequently another ceremony, one which is doubtless
more efficacious, was required.
The parties who resort to this fair, slept for two nights, some in the
church of the Capuchian friars and the others in that of the Cordeliers,
and when these two churchs were found to be insufficient to contain the
whole of such devotees, the church of the Hermitage of St. Cosmo
received the surplus.
In the three edifices, the women were during the two nights, separated
from the men, the latter lying under the vestibule, and the women, in
the church, these, whether in the church of the Capuchins or in that of
the Cordeliers, were under the protection of the Father guardian, the
vicar, and a monk of merit. In the hermitage, it was the hermit himself
who watched over them.
From this it may easily be imagined how the miracle was effected without
troubling Saint Cosmo and Saint Damianus at all, in the matter, as well
as that the virtue, possessed by those two saints was extended even to
young maidens and widows.
Essay II.
ANAPHRODISIA; OR, ABSENCE OF THE REPRODUCTIVE
POWER.
A description of the symbols under which the _reproductive power_ was
anciently worshipped, having been given in the preceding Essay, the
present one will contain some account of the _negation_ or _absence_ of
that faculty, whether total or partial, as known under the names of
_Impotency_ and _Sterility_.
Potency or power, as regards the generative act, may be defined as--the
aptitude or ability to beget; and Impotency, the negation or absence of
such power.
The canon law distinguished three kinds of impotency--viz., that which
proceeds from frigidity; that which is caused by sorcery (ligature or
point-tying), and that which proceeding from some defect of conformation
is properly designated as _impotentia coeundi_. The different lends of
impotency may be thus classed--1. Those which are proper to men; 2.
Those proper to women, and 3. Those common to both sexes.
The causes of impotency proper to man are natural frigidity; defect of
conformation, and accident.
The causes of impotency proper to women are all such obstacles as arise
_ex clausurâ uteri aut nimia arctitudine_.
The causes common both to men and women are the defect of puberty and
imperfect conformation.[39]
Impotency may also be divided into natural and accidental; the former
being that which a person is born with, or which proceeds _ex vitio
naturalis temperamenti vel partium genitalium_; and the latter that
which arises from some accident, as _ex casu vel morbo_.[40]
Another definition of impotency in man is the _non posse seminare in
vase idoneo_; three things being considered as indispensable to his due
performance of the generative act.--_Ut arriget_ or erection; 2, _Ut vas
fœmineum resaret_, or intromission, and 3, _Ut in vase seminat_, or
emission.
Sterility must not be confounded with impotency. Many women are barren,
but very few are impotent; while, on the contrary, many men are impotent
who ought not, on that account, to be regarded as barren. In either sex
impotency is present when from whatever cause an individual cannot
concur in the sexual contact. Sterility exists when the contact, after
having been regularly accomplished, is followed by no productive result.
With the exception of those pathological cases in which deformities are
sometimes, but very rarely, met with, it may be affirmed that woman is
never impotent, for her organization opposes it. Radical impotence, in
fact, results in the female from the complete absence, or the occlusion
simply, of the vagina. Now, these cases are extremely rare, and may
there fore be considered as exceptions or as real monstrosities.
As the causes of sterility in women are numerous and of various kinds,
we shall briefly enumerate them.
The absence of ovaries or their deceased state are the radical cause of
sterility. These causes may be suspected but not cured. When there is no
uterus, still fecundation and pregnancy are not impossible, since
extra-uterine pregnancies are occasionally observed, that is to say,
cases in which the product of conception has escaped the uterus, end
proceeded to establish itself in some point of the lower belly. Neither
is the vagina indispensable, for cases are cited of the contraction of
this organ accompanied by the rectovaginal fistula, in which fecundation
is effected, although the fecundating fluid had been confined to the
rectum.
Female masturbation is another rife cause of barrenness in women. If it
be true that the number of eggs is limited, and that there are not more
than from 15 to 20 in each ovary, it is evident that sterility must
ensue when these 15 or 20 eggs have been detached without fecundation.
If, on the contrary, new eggs are continually secreted by the ovaries,
it is equally evident that the secretory action must, sooner or later,
become exhausted by the over excitement caused by the indulgence above
mentioned.
Another very great cause of sterility, and which must be of frequent
occurrence, is found in the obstructed or choked-up state of the
Fallopian tubes. These passages, which establish the communication
between the ovary and the uterus, may be obstructed by inflammation,
either acute or chronic, to which they must be subject in all diseases
to the abdomen, as well as by frequent excitement.
Morgagni speaks of certain women of the town, with whom the Fallopian
tubes were completely obliterated by the thickening of the parietes or
sides, an evident consequence of the continual orgasm in which they were
kept by immoderate indulgence in coition.
The absence of menstruation almost always induces barrenness. Cases are,
notwithstanding, reported in which women have their menses during
pregnancy, but these are exceptions which so far from invalidating the
rule, confirm it.
Polypi, or the developement of fibrous bodies in the uterus, present an
equal obstacle to fecundation, their presence having the effect of
perverting the physiological functions of the uterus, nor does their
removal always cause sterility to disappear.
Impotency in women can only result from the absence of the vagina, or
from its excessive narrowness which does not allow of the approach of
the male, although instances have occured of fecundation being effected
without the introduction of the male organ. Thus cases have been found
of women who have been fecundated, and have even arrived at the term of
pregnancy, having been obliged to submit to a surgical operation for the
removal of the Hymen, which membrane had not been broken in the acts
which had nevertheless effected the fecundation. Lastly, the excessive
length, when it does exist, of the clitoris, also opposes the conjugal
act, by the difficulty it presents to the introduction of the
fecundating organ; the only remedy to employed in this case consists in
amputation, an operation which has been frequently performed. The organ
in question is known to resemble, in a very great degree, the virile
member, both in external form and internal structure, to be susceptible
of erection and relaxation and endowned with exquisite sensibility. It
has been seen equal to the penis in volume. A remarkable instance is
given by Home.[41] It occured in a negress who was purchased by General
Melville, in the island of Dominica, in the West Indies, about the year
1744. She was of the Mandango nation, 24 years of age, her breasts were
very flat, she had a rough voice, and a masculine countenance. The
clitoris was two inches long, and in thickness resembled a common sized
thumb, when viewed at same distance the end appeared round and of a red
colour, but upon closer examination was found to be more pointed than
that of a penis, and having neither prepuce nor perforation; when
handled it became half erected, and was in that state fully three inches
long and much thicker than before: when she voided her urine she was
obliged to lift it up, as it completely covered the orifice of the
urethra. The other parts of the female organs were found to be in a
natural state. Columbus quotes the existence of a woman who had a
clitoris as long as the little finger. Haller speaks of another in whom
this organ was seven inches in length. Some have even been said to be of
the monstrous length of twelve inches. These are the enormous dimensions
which sometimes deceive as to the real character of the sex, and which
have occasioned a belief in the existence of real hermaphrodites. Women
so formed have also a great disposition to usurp the virile functions;
they preserve scarcely anything of their sex except their habits and
manners. Their stature is in general tall, their limbs muscular, their
face masculine, their voice deep, and their deportment bold and
manly--in a word, they completely justify the words of Martial:
"Mentiturque virum prodigiosa Venus."[42]
In the case of man's impotency it often happens, on the contrary, that,
with organs to all appearance perfectly formed, he is, nevertheless,
impotent.
If the woman be organized for receiving, the man is formed for
imparting; now, in the majority, of cases, his impotency is such that,
although he seems to be provided with abundant stores he is precluded
from offering them.
... "Si
Coneris, jacet exiguus cum ramice nervus
Et quamvis tota palpetur nocte, jacebit."[43]
Such, in fact, is the great difficulty of those individuals who have
abused their organs and destroyed their sensibility. The erectile tissue
whose turgescence is indispensable, no longer admits into its vascular
_plexus_ or network, a quantity of fluid sufficient to give the organ
the power of penetrating--_jacet exiguus_--and, although it may be
supposed that the seminal glands perform their functions perfectly well,
and secrete abundantly the fluid peculiar to them, the copulative organ
remains paralyzed. This is the impotence which is brought on by old age,
and which Ariosto has so forcibly described in the following lines,
wherein he relates the futile attempts made upon Angelica by the hermit:
Egli l'abbraccia, ed a piacer la tocca:
Ed ella dorme, e non più fare ischermo:
Or le baccia il bel petto, ora la bocca,
Non è, ch'l veggia, in quel loco aspro ed ermo.
Ma nel incontro, it suo destrier trabocca
Che al desio non risponde, it corpo infirmo:
.........
.........
.........
Tutte le vie, tutti i modi tenta,
_Ma quel pigre rozzo non però salta_
Indarno el fren gli scoute e li tormenta
E non può far che tenga la testa alta.[44]