Sexuality: An Illustrated History

by Sander L. Gilman

A pictorial cultural history of the images and iconography of sexuality in the Western world, from the Middle Ages down to the present. The first book of its type, this beautifully illustrated work contains 328 plates, many heretofore unknown, which comprise the visual tradition of human sexuality. Traces mythmaking about the sexual form, from the early cultural roots of Christianity to more recent mythmaking about AIDS, drawing on material from medicine, anatomy, pathology, art, and literature to show how our idea of the body and its sexuality has been portrayed. Includes new material on Jack the Ripper, and new interpretations on the contributions of Da Vinci and Goethe.

Genres: History

376 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 1989

About the author

Sander L. Gilman is an American cultural and literary historian. He is known for his contributions to Jewish studies and the history of medicine. He is the author or editor of over ninety books. Gilman's focus is on medicine and the echoes of its rhetoric in social and political discourse.