Rare 19th-century condom with erotic etching goes on display at Dutch museum

CNN

03-06-2025

CNN —
A rare 19th-century condom decorated with an erotic etching featuring a nun and three clergymen is going on display at a museum in the Netherlands.
Believed to be made from a sheep's appendix, the prophylactic dates back to 1830 and is likely a souvenir from a brothel, according to a statement from the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam on Tuesday.
Joyce Zelen, curator of prints at the museum, told CNN that condoms would have been sold under the counter at the time.
This example is in 'mint condition,' she said, with UV testing revealing that it hasn't been used.
This fact, as well as the print and the extended length of the condom, which is 20 centimeters (7.9 inches) long, suggest that this was 'a luxury brothel souvenir,' added Zelen.
'It makes it more of an object to laugh about with your friends than an actual object to use,' she said.
In the etching, the nun can be seen seated with her legs open while the three clergymen hold up their robes, revealing their erect penises.
'The inscription Voilà mon choix, meaning 'This is my choice,' makes the print a parody of both celibacy and the Judgement of Paris from Greek mythology,' said the museum.
Zelen explained that the printmaker would have laid the appendix of a sheep or goat out flat and used a copper plate with the inked etching on it to print the design onto it.
While this kind of condom was not likely to have been used, those designed to protect the wearer would have been made with similar materials, said Zelen.
They would have provided minimal protection from unwanted pregnancies and sexual transmitted infections such as syphilis, which was a significant public health problem in 19th century Europe, she added.
The Rijksmuseum acquired the condom at auction six months ago and it is the first example of a print on a condom to form part of the museum's collection.
It will be on display in the museum's Print Room until the end of November as part of an exhibit on 19th century prostitution and sexuality.
In recent years the Rijksmuseum has hit the headlines for putting together the largest ever exhibition of paintings by Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer, as well as for repatriating colonial artifacts to Sri Lanka following provenance research that started in 2017.