History

The dildo is the second most common of all sex toys, after the vibrator. It is also the one with the longest history, with its use going back at least 30,000 years. The oldest known dildo to be uncovered was found in Hohle Fels Cave near Ulm, Germany and has been dated as 30,000 years old. More recently, dildos were used by the ancient Egyptians and the Greeks. In Greece, explicit artwork has been uncovered depicting the use of dildos as a masturbatory aid and a group sex toy. The use of dildos probably went on through the dark ages, but there is little documentation of this. They emerged again in renaissance Itay, which was when and where the term dildo was coined. From Italy they spread throughout Western Europe and later came to England. Historic use of dildos has also been found in Africa, the Orient, the Asian sub-continent and Australasia. Dildos as we know them today, made of synthetic materials, first came about in 1966 and have since become a common possession of Western women and some gay males.

Material

Early dildos were made of wood and tar or any other material that could be easily moulded into a phallus. During the classical period, dildos were more often made of stone. Although poor people often used wood. During the renaissance most dildos were made of stone, but some have been found that were made of precious metals such as silver. In the 20th century dildos were originally crafted from plastic and later of PVC. In the last two decades silicone rubber became a popular material and more recently a specialised polyvinyl commonly know as CyberSkin.