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Saturday, January 2, 2016

Roman penis carving to go on display in Lincoln

The limestone carving was dug up in a garden in the Lincolnshire village of Braceby in 1995.
The family that found it have donated it to The Collection museum in Lincoln, where it will be exhibited sometime in the new year.
The museum's Antony Lee said Romans had an "obsession" with phallic imagery.
"It's a prevalent enough theme in Roman art and archaeology to be considered an obsession," he said.
Although pornographic imagery clearly existed, phallic imagery was not intended for this purpose.
"The phallus was a symbol both of protection and of promoting good fortune, and therefore was an entirely appropriate image to wear as jewellery or to carve on a city wall or important building, even to hang around your newborn baby's neck."
He said the family that found the carving kept it as a garden ornament, but they are now moving away and wanted it to stay in Lincolnshire.
It was probably originally inserted into the wall of a building, he added.
"The carving on the face is in relief and consists of an erect phallus pointing upwards towards a shape above, clearly the focus of the phallus' attention, and which might represent either a vagina or an evil eye," Mr Lee said.
The evil eye often appeared alongside phallic imagery in Roman art as the phallus warded against it.
The monumental Roman city walls at Lincoln had at least one phallic carving on them, adding spiritual protection.
The museum already houses examples of phallic bone and copper alloy pendants, a greyware ceramic spout and even a carving from Long Bennington of a man riding a winged phallus.

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