The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam on Tuesday placed on display a rare condom from about 1830, featuring an erotic print of a nun and three clergymen in provocative poses.
The contraceptive, which is probably made from a sheep’s appendix, might be a souvenir from a brothel, of which only two known copies exist, the museum said in a statement.
The prophylactic “depicts both the playful and the serious side of sexual health,” it said.
Photo: AFP
The museum is to display the sheath as part of an exhibition called “Safe Sex?” on 19th century prostitution and sexuality.
The print on the condom shows a nun lifting up her skirt and pointing her finger at three clergymen, who also have their genitals on full display.
“It shows that printmaking had many applications and offers insight into sexuality and prostitution in the 19th century,” the museum said.
The phrase “This is my choice” is written along the sheath in French, which the museum said is a reference to the Pierre-Auguste Renoir painting The Judgment of Paris, which depicts the Trojan prince Paris judging a beauty contest between three goddesses.
The Rijksmuseum said the condom came from an era where sex was “fraught with fears of unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases — especially syphilis.”
“This is the first example in the Rijksmuseum collection of a print on a condom,” the museum said.
The condom is on display until the end of November.
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