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Mural of Mercury in Pompeii.

The word phallus can refer to an erect penis, to a penis-shaped object such as a dildo, or to a mimetic image of an erect penis. Any object that symbolically resembles a penis may also be referred to as a phallus; however, such objects are more often referred to as being phallic (as in "phallic symbol"). Such symbols often represent the fertility and cultural implications that are associated with the male sexual organ, as well as the male orgasm. Image File history File links Broom_icon. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... The penis (plural penises, penes) is an external male sexual organ. ... The genus Phallus, commonly known as stinkhorns, are a group of basidiomycetes which produce a foul-scented, phallus-shaped mushroom, whence they derive their name. ... Image File history File links Mercury_god. ... Image File history File links Mercury_god. ... Salle des illustres, ceiling painting, by Jean André Rixens. ... A sculpture of the Roman god Mercury by 17th-century Flemish artist Artus Quellinus. ... For other uses, see Pompeii (disambiguation). ... The penis (plural penises, penes) is an external male sexual organ. ... A 7-inch silicone dildo A dildo (or dildoe, a rare alternate spelling) is a sex toy, often explicitly phallic in appearance, intended for bodily interaction during masturbation or sexual intercourse. ... Mimesis (μίμησις from μιμεîσθαι) in its simplest context means imitation or representation in Greek. ...

Etymology

Via Latin, and Greek φαλλός, from Indo-European root *bhel- "to inflate, swell". Compare with Old Norse (and modern Icelandic) boli = "bull", Old English bulluc = "bullock", Greek φαλλή = "whale". [1] For other uses, see Latin (disambiguation). ... The Proto-Indo-European language (PIE) is the hypothetical common ancestor of the Indo-European languages, spoken by the Proto-Indo-Europeans. ... The root is the primary lexical unit of a word, which carries the most significant aspects of semantic content and cannot be reduced into smaller constituents. ... Old Norse or Danish tongue is the Germanic language once spoken by the inhabitants of the Nordic countries (for instance during the Viking Age). ... Icelandic (íslenska) is a North Germanic language spoken in Iceland. ... Look up bull in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Old English (also called Anglo-Saxon[1], Old English: ) is an early form of the English language that was spoken in parts of what is now England and southern Scotland between the mid-fifth century and the mid-twelfth century. ... A Bullock is a castrated bull. ... This article is about the animal. ...

In physical anatomy

The term phallus refers to the erect male penis. It is sometimes also used to refer to the clitoris of a female, particularly during fetal development of the urinary and reproductive organs, before sexual differentiation is evident. This is also the case for the immature male analog, the immature glans penis. The penis (plural penises, penes) is an external male sexual organ. ... The clitoris (Greek ) is a sexual organ that is present in biologically female mammals. ... In prenatal development, the urinary and reproductive organs are developed from the intermediate mesoderm. ... Sexual differentiation is the process of development of the differences between males and females from an undifferentiated zygote (fertilized egg). ... The glans penis (or simply glans) is the pressure sensitive tip of the penis. ...

It also refers to the male sexual organ of certain birds, which differs anatomically from a true (i.e. mammalian) penis; see Bird anatomy. For other uses, see Bird (disambiguation). ... External anatomy of a typical bird 1 Beak, 2 Head, 3 Iris, 4 Pupil, 5 Mantle, 6 Lesser coverts, 7 Scapulars, 8 Coverts, 9 Tertials, 10 Rump, 11 Primaries, 12 Vent, 13 Thigh, 14 Tibio-tarsal articulation, 15 Tarsus, 16 Feet, 17 Tibia, 18 Belly, 19 Flanks, 20 Breast, 21...

In art

Ancient and modern sculptures of phalloi have been found in many parts of the world, notably among the vestiges of ancient Greece and Rome. A sculpture is a three-dimensional object, which for the purposes of this article is man-made and selected for special recognition as art. ... A relic is an object, especially a piece of the body or a personal item of someone of religious significance, carefully preserved with an air of veneration as a tangible memorial, Relics are an important aspect of Buddhism, some denominations of Christianity, Hinduism, shamanism, and many other personal belief systems. ... Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew from a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula circa the 9th century BC to a massive empire straddling the Mediterranean Sea. ...

The Hohle phallus, a 28,000-year-old siltstone phallus discovered in the Hohle Fels cave and first assembled in 2005, is among the oldest phallic representations known.^[1]

Shakespeare often incorporated phallic symbols into his plays; swords and knives, for example, were phallic symbols representing the masculinity of their wielders.^{[citation needed]} For example, in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, Theseus says to his fiancé Hippolyta "I wooed thee with my sword" Shakespeare redirects here. ... Swiss longsword, 15th or 16th century Look up Sword in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For other uses, see A Midsummer Nights Dream (disambiguation). ...

In religion

In anthropology, phallicism or phallic worship refers to the ritual adoration of the human penis, or the phallus. Elements of phallicism have been found in many cultures, including Ancient Greece, India and Sumer. Anthropology (from Greek: ἀνθρωπος, anthropos, human being; and λόγος, logos, knowledge) is the study of humanity. ... The penis (plural penises, penes) is an external male sexual organ. ... Ancient Greece is a period in Greek history that lasted for around nine hundred years. ... Sumer (or Šumer) was the earliest known civilization of the ancient Near East, located in lower Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) from the time of the earliest records in the mid 4th millennium BC until the rise of Babylonia in the late 3rd millennium BC. The term Sumerian applies to all speakers...

Ancient India

In Tantric Shaivism a symbolic marker, the lingam was used for phallic worship of the Hindu God Shiva. In related art the linga or lingam is the depiction of Shiva as a phallus (for example: mukhalinga) or cosmic pillar.This pillar is the worship focus of the Hindu temple, and is often situated within a yoni,indicating a balance between male and female creative energies. Fertility is not the limit of reference derived from these sculptures, more generally they may refer to abstract principles of creation. Tantricism should not be generalised to all forms of Hindu worship. The Sri Yantra This article is an overview of Tantra and an in-depth look at the Tantra of Hinduism. ... It has been suggested that Shiva lingham stones be merged into this article or section. ... This article discusses the adherents of Hinduism. ... For other uses, see Siva (disambiguation). ... A Hindu temple, is a house of worship for followers of Hinduism. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...

The mukhalingas of the Huntington Archive[2] might well be compared with the personified Phallos terracotta of the Delos Museum, depicted in "Jean Marcadé "Die Griechen" Ars et Amor-Die Erotik In der Kunst, Wilhelm Heyne Verlag München 1978, pg 78 The island of Delos, Carl Anton Joseph Rottmann, 1847 The island of Delos (Greek: Δήλος, Dhilos), isolated in the centre of the roughly circular ring of islands called the Cyclades, near Mykonos, had a position as a holy sanctuary for a millennium before Olympian Greek mythology made it the birthplace of... École française dAthènes (the French School of Athens) or the EfA with the f decapitalized is a French-speaking university school promoting the studies of the language, the history and Ancient Greece. ...

Ancient Egypt

The Ancient Egyptians related the cult of phallus with Osiris. When Osiris' body was cut in 14 pieces, Seth scattered them all over Egypt and his wife Isis retrieved all of them except one, his penis, which was swallowed by a fish (see the Legend of Osiris and Isis). For other uses, see Osiris (disambiguation). ... Isis is a goddess in Egyptian mythology. ... This article contains information that has not been verified and thus might not be reliable. ...

The phallus was a symbol of fertility, and the god Min was often depicted ithyphallic (with an erect penis). The Egyptian God Min This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...

Ancient Greece

In traditional Greek mythology, Hermes, god of boundaries and exchange (popularly the messenger god) was considered to be a phallic deity by association with representations of him on herms (pillars) featuring a phallus. There is no scholarly consensus on this depiction and it would be speculation to consider Hermes a type of fertility god. The bust of Zeus found at Otricoli (Sala Rotonda, Museo Pio-Clementino, Vatican) Greek mythology is the body of stories belonging to the Ancient Greeks concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. ... Hermes Fastening his Sandal, Roman marble copy of a Lysippan bronze (Louvre Museum) Hermes (Greek, , IPA: ), in Greek mythology, is the Olympian god of boundaries and of the travelers who cross them, of shepherds and cowherds, of orators and wit, of literature and poets, of athletics, of weights and measures... There are very few or no other articles that link to this one. ...

Pan, son of Hermes, was often depicted as having an exaggerated erect phallus. Pan (Greek , genitive ) is the Greek god of shepherds and flocks, of mountain wilds, hunting and rustic music: paein means to pasture. ... Hermes Fastening his Sandal, Roman marble copy of a Lysippan bronze (Louvre Museum) Hermes (Greek, , IPA: ), in Greek mythology, is the Olympian god of boundaries and of the travelers who cross them, of shepherds and cowherds, of orators and wit, of literature and poets, of athletics, of weights and measures...

Priapus was a Greek god of fertility whose symbol was an exaggerated phallus. The son of Aphrodite and either Dionysus or Adonis, according to different forms of the original myth, he was the protector of livestock, fruit plants, gardens, and male genitalia. His name is the origin of the medical term priapism. Bronze sculpture of Priapus making an offering to his phallus, House of the Vettii, Pompeii Fresco of Priapus, House of the Vettii, Pompeii. ... The Birth of Venus, (detail) by Sandro Botticelli, 1485 For other uses, see Aphrodite (disambiguation). ... This article is about the ancient deity. ... Adonis is an archetypal life-death-rebirth deity in Greek mythology, and a central cult figure in various mystery religions. ... Fresco of Priapus, House of the Vettii, Pompeii. ...

Ancient Scandinavia

The Norse god Freyr was a phallic deity, representing male fertility and love. Norse, Viking or Scandinavian mythology comprises the indigenous pre-Christian religion, beliefs and legends of the Scandinavian peoples, including those who settled on Iceland, where most of the written sources for Norse mythology were assembled. ... This 19th century representation of Freyr shows him with his boar Gullinbursti and his sword. ...

The short story Völsa þáttr describes a family of Norwegians worshipping a preserved horse penis. Völsa þáttr is a short story which is only extant in the Flatey Book, where it is found in a chapter of Ólofs saga Helga. ...

Ancient Rome

Ancient Romans wore phallic jewelry as talismans against the evil eye. John Phillip, The Evil Eye (1859), a self-portrait depicting the artist sketching a Spanish gypsy who thinks she is being given the evil eye The evil eye is a widely distributed element of folklore, in which it is believed that the envy elicited by the good luck of fortunate...

Native America

Figures of Kokopelli in Pre-Columbian America often include phallic content. Kokopelli is a fertility deity, usually depicted as a humpbacked flute player (often with a huge phallus and antenna-like protrusions on his head), who has been venerated by many Native American cultures in the Southwestern United States. ... The term pre-Columbian is used to refer to the cultures of the New World in the era before significant European influence. ...

Ancient Japan

The Mara Kannon shrine （麻羅観音 or まらかんのん）in Nagato city, Yamaguchi prefecture. One of many fertility shrines in Japan that still exist today and also present in festivals such as the Danjiri Matsuri （だんじり祭）in Kishiwada city, Osaka prefecture though historically phallus adoration was more widespread.

Gallery

An open-air Hindu linga Image File history File links Lingam. ... Linga worship (Estate of Cynthia and Harlen Welsh) Lingam or Linga is the Sanskrit word for mark. ...	Phallic sculpture, Kathmandu, Nepal Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 561 pixelsFull resolution (1891 × 1326 pixel, file size: 206 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) I took this photo myself in 1973 in Kathmandu. ... For the retail store chain, see Kathmandu (company). ...	The Egyptian God Min Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (803x1200, 369 KB) Lithuania-Wikipedia (lt:Vaizdas:Min lx. ... Min can be: // Abbreviation for minimum function in mathematics. ...	Phallus-shaped column from the sanctuary of Dionysus in Delos Image File history File links DelosPhallus. ... This article is about the ancient deity. ... The island of Delos, Carl Anton Joseph Rottmann, 1847 The island of Delos (Greek: Δήλος, Dhilos), isolated in the centre of the roughly circular ring of islands called the Cyclades, near Mykonos, had a position as a holy sanctuary for a millennium before Olympian Greek mythology made it the birthplace of...
Kokopelli Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (594x792, 576 KB) photo by Einar Einarsson Kvaran, aka Carptrash 19:28, 15 July 2006 (UTC) , taken July 15, 2006 in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, USA for kokopelli They will replace my earlier photos. ... Kokopelli is a fertility deity, usually depicted as a humpbacked flute player (often with a huge phallus and antenna-like protrusions on his head), who has been venerated by many Native American cultures in the Southwestern United States. ...

In psychoanalysis

The symbolic version of the phallus, a phallic symbol is meant to represent male generative powers. According to Sigmund Freud's theory of psychoanalysis, while males possess a penis, no one can possess the symbolic phallus. Jacques Lacan's Ecrits: A Selection includes an essay titled The Significance of the Phallus which articulates the difference between "being" and "having" the phallus. Men are positioned as men insofar as they are seen to have the phallus. Women, not having the phallus, are seen to "be" the phallus. The symbolic phallus is the concept of being the ultimate man, and having this is compared to having the divine gift of God. Mural of Mercury in Pompeii. ... Sigmund Freud (IPA: ), born Sigismund Schlomo Freud (May 6, 1856 – September 23, 1939), was an Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist who founded the psychoanalytic school of psychology. ... Psychoanalysis is a family of psychological theories and methods based on the work of Sigmund Freud. ... Jacques-Marie-Émile Lacan (French IPA: ) (April 13, 1901 – September 9, 1981) was a French psychoanalyst, psychiatrist, and doctor. ...

In Gender Trouble, Judith Butler explores Freud's and Lacan's discussions of the symbolic phallus by pointing out the connection between the phallus and the penis. She writes, "The law requires conformity to its own notion of 'nature'. It gains its legitimacy through the binary and asymmetrical naturalization of bodies in which the phallus, though clearly not identical to the penis, deploys the penis as its naturalized instrument and sign" (135). In Bodies that Matter, she further explores the possibilities for the phallus in her discussion of The Lesbian Phallus. If, as she notes, Freud enumerates a set of analogies and substitutions that rhetorically affirm the fundamental transferability of the phallus from the penis elsewhere, then any number of other things might come to stand in for the phallus (62). Image:J Butler. ...

In gender studies

In cultural terms, phallocentrism is used to describe a male-centered penis doctrine or behavior, and sometimes refers to patriarchy, while gynocentrism is used to describe female-centered doctrine or behavior, and sometimes refers to matriarchy. Furthermore, the term yonic has often been used to describe something as vaginal and is considered the counterpart to the term phallic. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Look up patriarchy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Gynocentrism (Greek γυνο, gyno-, woman, χεντρον, kentron, center) is the practice, often consciously adopted, of placing female human beings or the female point of view at the center of ones view of the world and its culture and history. ... Matriarchy is a gynocentric form of society, in which power is with the female and especially with the mothers of a community. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Human female internal reproductive anatomy The vagina (from the Latin for sheath or scabbard ) is the tubular tract leading from the uterus to the exterior of the body in female mammals, or to the cloaca in female birds and some reptiles. ...

In fiction

Phallic symbolism can be perceived in a wide range of fiction and other popular culture works (in particular when analyzed in the context of psychoanalysis, although frequently that view is unconfirmed or unsanctioned by the creators). Popular culture, sometimes called pop culture, consists of widespread cultural elements in any given society. ... Psychoanalysis is a family of psychological theories and methods based on the work of Sigmund Freud. ...

• In the novel The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown describes the Eiffel Tower as a thousand-foot phallus.

This article is about the novel. ... Dan Brown (born June 22, 1964) is an American author of thriller fiction, best known for the controversial 2003 bestselling novel, The Da Vinci Code. ... The Eiffel Tower (French: , ) is an iron tower built on the Champ de Mars beside the River Seine in Paris. ...

Notes

1. ^ Amos, Jonathan. "Ancient phallus unearthed in cave", BBC News, 2005-07-25. Retrieved on 2006-07-08. 

Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 206th day of the year (207th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 189th day of the year (190th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

References

• Vigeland Monolith - Oslo, Norway [3]

• Honour, Hugh (1999). The Visual Arts: A History. New York: H.N. Abrams. ISBN 0-810-93935-5. 

• Keuls, Eva C. (1985). The Reign of the Phallus. New York: Harper & Row. ISBN 0-520-07929-9. 
• Leick, Gwendolyn (1994). Sex and Eroticism in Mesopotamian Literature. New York: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-06534-8. 
• Lyons, Andrew P.; Harriet D. Lyons (2004). Irregular Connections: A History of Anthropology and Sexuality. U Nebraska Press. ISBN 0-8032-8036-X.