You heard it! We have sex museums. Before letting your imagination run wild, sex museums are museums that display and explore matters of sexualities in different parts of the world. All sorts of sexual manifestations are covered within the walls of the museums. Masturbation, sex toys, erotic couplings, erotic objects, and erotic books, sexual sculptures, furniture, and even cultural relevance of sex.
There is so much of sexual history and education covered within these humorous and erotic worlds, so it is only fair that we explore them all. Some question whether these historical museums pertaining to the sexual world are all that worth it. We question whether the content of the museums is actually art or it’s just porn. Is it misogynistic to explore a sex museum? Why should we travel across the world to see a room full of ancient porn?
Let’s share a different light on the dilemma of art versus porn. Sex museums cover most of the ancient erotic art and history. And there is a clear distinctive difference between pornography and erotic art. Erotic art is not something that was invented in the late nineties or in the early 2000s. It has existed since the earliest of time, even during the stone age. Erotic art has been displayed on the walls of caves to the walls of our modern 21st-century loft. Eroticism during prehistoric times may not be as explicit as it is in today’s world. Nevertheless, it existed and it needs to be embraced and explored. Sex museums are our chance to witness the growth of sexuality and sex revolution from the ancient days till now.
Sex museums also provide light onto feminism as more and more women tried to reclaim sex from the male gaze. A few centuries ago, women were not as loud or as expressive with their sexuality as opposed to men. Many of the ancient erotic art and sculptures were all from the male perspective. But sex museums have shown us the gradual increase of female empowerment as women started to express sexuality with art as a medium. With the rise of feminist also came the rise of activism and sexual liberation with erotic art. Taboo and criminalized sexual orientations confronted the world through erotic art for a sense of justice. Homosexuality gradually became more accepted in society, and so did homosexual art.
Contrary to common belief, sex museums are also not all that new. They have been with us since the ’60s and became much more popular from the 1990s. Sexual revolution began in the years 1960-the 1970s, so it only makes sense that sex museums were part of this sexual liberation and revolution movement. These museums host erotic art collections from various different countries and cultures within Asia, Europe, Africa, and America.
Many of the sexual artifacts in sex museums are obtained with much difficulty. No government research takes place to uncover sexually explicit content. It is not considered as “relevant” to the natural history that is often embedded in the other regular museums. Despite that, we cannot deny that even sexual artifacts are crucial to understanding human evolution over the past years. Sex is a big part of our life and the way we evaluated sex as a concept has no stayed the same.
Some of the sexual artifacts that may raise interest for us include fine artworks by various notable artists such as Pablo Picasso, Rocio Caballero, Joan Miro, and even John Lennon. Drawing and painting are not the only noteworthy explorations of erotic museums. Others include various depictions and translations of the Kama sutra, Erotic folk art, and contemporary erotic sculptures as well. Some of these sculptures come from various sex subcultures and other parts of the world where they were used in religious rituals. Some of these include sexual sculptures that used to be in Indian temples, that probably once served as fertility symbols or even sexual gratification symbols. Needless to say, it is extremely stimulating to explore all of these in one place.
There is no specific known number of sex museums around the world but they sure exist in various corners of Asia, Europe, and America. The type of sex museums also differ. Some of these museums are dedicated to sex toys while others are more refined toward simple erotic art.
There are also museums that cover various sexual interests and kinks such as BDSM, fetishism, sadomasochism, objectum sexuality, age play and the list goes on. For example, a museum in Budapest opened its first-ever sex and erotic museum with an exhibition of BDSM. on the other hand, private collectors in Korea worked to open a love land, an outdoor erotic park, on Jeju Island. The park hosts over 100 erotic sculptures and educational films that are considered sexual artifacts.
It’s not all films, sculptures, and erotic murals. Sex toys also have a museum of their own in various corners of the world, and who wouldn’t want an exciting ride with sex toys? Exploring sex toy museums may be just as thrillful as exploring a sex toy shop. One such museum is the sex machine museum in the Czech Republic, which has a wide range of erotic toys and appliances that are used for sexual pleasure and satisfaction. There are over more than 200 objects on display for a very titillating experience. Erotic clothing and olf cinematic films are also displayed in the museums, certainly enhancing our already stimulating sexual experience in the museum.
For many years, sex museums have been a means to attract tourists. This is certainly an understatement to the attraction in Russia’s infamous sex museum, the St. Petersburg Museum of Erotica. The museum allegedly holds the very famous “Russia’s greatest love machine” and the monk, Grigori Rasputin’s penis. Famously coined as the mad monk, many claimed to have his genitalia in their possession after his assassination and castration in 1916. Over the years it is believed that this museum holds the true rasputin’s genitalia and it is now the main attraction of the museum. Who would have thought that a dead man’s genitalia would gain so much traction?
Watching a line of antique vibrators and ancient sex toys might not be the idea of a fun evening for everyone. But for those interested in a very stimulating sexual experience by themselves or with their partners, a sex museum is definitely worth the visit. Not only do we get to enjoy a sexually charged environment, but we also get a glimpse of the sexual revolution.
