Roman Sex: 100 B.C. to A.D. 250

Roman Sex: 100 B.C. to A.D. 250 by John Clarke. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9780810942639.

Picture a world where good sex is a blessing of the gods, not a cause for guilt, and where acts often considered immoral, even illegal, by todays standards are instead celebrated. Such a world is no futurists fantasy, but rather the reality of ancient Rome, 100 B.C. to A.D. 250. In Roman Sex, a lavishly illustrated, contextual study of the erotic art of that era, historian John R. Clarke exposes previously hidden paintings, sculptures, and ceramics featuring such controversial subject matter as group sex, lesbianism, and the phallus as talisman. He then uses these works to explain ancient Roman attitudes toward a range of societal issues. The beautifully reproduced art, all in color, hails from the entire Roman empire, including what is now Germany and France. Fresh, accessible, and seriously fun, Roman Sex offers copious information about a culture that, though very different, was an important precursor of our own.