You may think of the sex doll as a modern invention for lonely men, but it actually has a deep, ancient history. This great read in the Atlantic traces its origins back to when folks wrote poems about being obsessed with statues to Hitler to the first time you could actually ship these things in the mail. In the age of the internet and stuff like this, sex dolls almost seem like a throwback to simpler times and, as it turns out, they go back to the way, way simpler times.
8 AD.
The First Sex Doll Story Told. In Metamorphoses, Ovid wrote of a myth involving a woman sculpted from ivory by Pygmalion. Her name was Galatea and he became so obsessed with her, bathing her feeding her and of course, sleeping with her, eventually Aphrodite (presumably sick of being weirded out) made her into a real woman. Thus, the porno version of Pinocchio was born.
11th to 12th Century
Touching of Naked Statues Encouraged. Naked women made of marble, called “Sheela-na-gigs,” were carved into the sides of English and Irish churches to ward off evil spirits. The carvings had exaggerated vulvas and a legend at the time said caressing these sexy busts gave you the power to heal others. Perhaps, sexual healing
15th Century
The First Sex Dolls at Sea. Called “Dame De Voyage” in French, “Dama De Vinje” in Spanish or, the most hilarious of the three, “Seemannsbraut,” in German, these female dolls made out of sewn cloth were used by sailors aboard their ships to occupy their time (and bodies) on long trips at sea.
1941
Nazi’s Invent the Modern Sex Doll. That’s right! The world’s first sex-dolls as we know them were created in Nazi Germany at the request of the SS leader, Heinrich Himmler. Called the “Borghild Field-Hygiene Project,” Himmler came up with the concept to stop the “unnecessary losses” of Nazi soldiers due to STD’s. The Project was considered ”Geheime Reichssache,” translated: ”More secret than top secret.”
Did Hitler invent Sexdolls for real
It was Hitler’s idea and this project titled ‘the Borghild Project’ from 1940 was kept highly confidential. Apparently, when the German soldiers were stationed in France, their alliance with prostitutes there had led to an outbreak of syphilis.
This project was headed by his officer S.S. commander Heinrich Himmler who had written to Hitler warning him of the outbreak. “The greatest danger in Paris is the widespread and uncontrolled presence of whores, picking up clients in bars, dance halls, and other places. It is our duty to prevent soldiers from risking their health just for the sake of a quick adventure,” he wrote.
Now Hitler didn’t want his soldiers to be contracting STDs or fathering ren of a mixed-race – after all racial discrimination was the basis of everything that he was fighting for. But he realized that these men won’t be able to keep it in their pants for long so out of that desperate need, he thought why not make women of plastic They would not have any rights, respect, or a uterus. Basically, the dolls were like women except for no uterus. There would be no STDs either. A Danish doctor Olen Hannussen was ordered in 1941 to develop the inflatable doll, as reported by Italian newspaper Corriere Della Sera.
And thus this concept of Sexdolls got to work
The story of this was first published in a Norwegian newspaper and it pointed out that Hitler was very closely involved in picking out the details of the doll. The paper quoted Hitler to have given her specifications: “She should be a natural size with a pretty woman’s appearance with white skin, blonde hair, blue eyes, 1.76 meters (5 feet, nine inches) high, with large lips and breasts.” Erm, sure are there any more beauty stereotypes you could fit in here What can you expect from a fascist leader
Hannussen wrote in his logbook, “The doll has only one purpose and she should never become a substitute for the honorable mother at home… When the soldier makes love to Borghild, it has nothing to do with love. Therefore the face of our anthropomorphic sex-machine should be exactly how Weininger described the common wanton’s face.” He wrote that these dolls should have a “boyish hairdo” because apparently, it was the “field-whore” and how do these connect Short-haired women mean low morals too according to these men. He further noted that these dolls were a “part of the fighting forces” and not an “honorable” woman. This is really so disgusting.
These dolls called “gynoids” and “comforters” were meant for soldiers to inflate up whenever they felt arousal. However, eventually, soldiers refused to carry them around out of embarrassment and the Germans feared if they were caught by the enemies, they would be made fun of.
So who Actually discovered this
It was author Graeme Donald who found out about this top-secret sex doll operation by Adolf Hitler while conducting research for his book Mussolini’s Barber which is an assortment of bizarre military stories. He figured that Ruth and Elliot Handler made their first Barbie after visiting Germany in 1956 when co-incidentally they had bought Bild Lilli doll, a sex toy sold in Germany. “While I was researching this I came across references to Nazi sex dolls and found out that Hitler had ordered them to be made,” Donald told TIME. “As ever, more troops were laid low by disease than by bullets. Syphilis was a problem Hitler was aware of and he was rumored to have suffered from it himself,” he further added.
1975
The Stepford Wives Premieres. A film about the quaint town of Stepford, Connecticut where men have beautiful robot wives that are all absolutely perfect…except for the fact that they’re creepy as hell. Trivia: Diane Keaton turned the role of Joanna down the night before signing her contract because her analyst got “bad vibes” from the script.
The early ’80s
The First Sex Robot is invented. British Company, Sex Objects Ltd. creates a sex robot, named “36C,” for obvious reasons. “She” also had a 16-bit microprocessor and voice synthesizer that allowed primitive responses to speech and push-button inputs. People who used this still get turned on when they hear Stephen Hawking speak.
1995
The Inflatable Sex Sheep Sold. Muttonbone Productions, Inc. creates a life-sized, anatomically correct inflatable sheep called the Love Ewe. It is sold mainly as a gag gift. I hope.
1996
First “Realistic” Sex Doll Created. At 29 years-old, Matt McMullen stops making scary Halloween masks for a living and creates the first female sex doll that is anatomically correct in look and feels. Her name is Leah (above). McMullen goes on to create the company Real Dolls, one of the most popular sex doll companies in the world. The dolls have a poseable PVC skeleton with steel joints and silicone flesh, which is advertised as “the state-of-the-art for life-like human body simulation”. They are now available in 10 customizable body styles, with a choice of 15 faces and five skin tones. Prices begin at around $6500, with some models costing over $10,000. One was also featured in the 1997 film, Lars and the Real Girl, somehow legitimizing the company.
2009
The First Male Sex Doll. Germans make the first make Android-Sex doll, named “Nax.” It has an “automatically soaring penis” and “artificial automatic ejaculation.” It costs $10,000 and the only thing weirder than the name Nax is what he looks like (above). Yikes! I guess German ladies love bald dudes with ponytails that reek of failed Cirque Du Soleil performer. Sorry American ladies, better luck next time.
2010
The First Sex Doll with a “Customizable Personality.” At the Adult Entertainment Expo in Las Vegas, Doug Hines, owner and designer for TrueCompanion, revealed Roxxy (above). She costs a mere $7,000 and reacts to tactile and verbal stimulation. Personalities range from “Wild Wendy,” an outgoing party Lady to “Frigid Farrah,” the shy librarian type. Her interests can be modified according to the owner’s conversation preferences. For example: “No, I don’t think you’re weird at all. You’re cute and hot and totally normal and of course, you could get a real woman if you wanted to, you’re just too busy being rich and powerful. Also, you should buy me lots of sexy friends. What’s your credit card number again”
