Numismatics
erotic tokens and coins
Ancient Greece
The ancient Greeks did not generally have trouble viewing the naked human bodies. Nudity in the ancient world was regarded as a natural aspect of life. Evidenced by the number of preserved art and craft artifacts - sculptures, ceramics, as well as coins. Rare, however, are clearly a representation of characters in sexual positions, such as a satyr and nymph on archaic Greek coins from Macedonia and from the island of Thassos.
Ancient Rome
In Roman times it is not known direct representation of sexual themes on coins (currency), although the nude figures on the coins were displayed normally. Besides the standard coin minted by the Romans as well as special orders - metal tokens called tesserae, which were distributed on different occasions and served as a ticket to such performances in the circus.
Specific tessera of 1 century. chips are rare erotic called spintriae that were originally minted in bronze. One side shows the token act of love - every man and woman, the other side bears a Roman numeral in the wreath. Known as the numbers I to XVI, with numbers higher than 13 are very rare.
Today only guess for what purpose were these chips manufactured. Some experts say that their main function was to enter a public house and pumping services displayed on the token. Representation services allegedly to overcome language barriers between nations throughout the Roman Empire, for example, Syrian sailor who had just arrived in Rome and did not know a word of Latin, as shown in Figure knew exactly what he will. According to others, however, was a special gambling chips, similar to today's erotic cards, or chips used in the numerical one of board games.
Parallel to those of Roman erotic tokens are tokens used as circus tickets or vouchers for food scoops. These usually carried on one side a portrait of the emperor. But see the emperor on a chip with erotic themes were nemyslitelé so rubní spintrií party bears the numeric designation, perhaps the value of the chip. According to the currently most widespread opinion, really was a voucher for sexual services, which were distributed free of charge, but not as much as bread and chips in the game.
Renaissance
The Renaissance was trying to build on ancient Greek and Roman art, and drew from it. The form of the male penis was a symbol for the ancient Greeks and the generative forces of nature itself was a sign fallos satyr wine god Dionysus guides. These satyrs depicted in the Renaissance, then lust, like Pan, the god of herds and hunting, which coincide. They are demons wild, untamed PRE-families. The Greek word pan means all - permeates all things. Head composed of penises shows that its owner does not think of anything else, medals depicts natural, uncultivated controlling male sexuality. Motive was 16th in Italy century unusual, such as Francesco Urbino decked head composed of penises playful majolica plate from between 1530 - the 1537th
