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At first glance at this pendant, you’d be forgiven for confusing it with any blob-like object.
But the carved, 1.7-inch graphite object could actually have been modeled after a penis, according to a new study.
Researchers at the University of Bordeaux have analyzed a 42,000-year-old pendant discovered in the Selenge Basin in northern Mongolia.
If indeed phallic in nature, it would be the earliest phallic artwork found to date.
Not everyone is so convinced, however, with one expert dismissing the pendant as a “small and rather shapeless object.”
At first glance at this pendant, you’d be forgiven for confusing it with any blob-like object. But the carved graphite object could actually have been modeled after a penis, according to a new study
Throughout history, phallic emblems have been found on a wide variety of objects, from decorative furniture in homes to prints on the walls.
Many once believed the symbol acted as protection against evil — with babies even wearing penises around their necks for good luck, according to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
The phallus was an object of veneration and gained a magical-religious cult.
“The phallic symbol appears on lamps, masks, pendants and rings, walls of houses, pavement of a street, corners, balconies, doors, baths or walls. Always maintaining his character as a collective protector against possible evil and danger.’
The pendant was found in Mongolia in 2016 and has been dated to between 42,400 and 41,900 years old.
While it doesn’t really look like a phallus at first glance, the researchers point to specific features that suggest it could be a phallus.
This includes a defined urethral opening and features to distinguish the glans from the shaft, the researchers said.
While it doesn’t really look like a phallus at first glance, the researchers point to specific features that suggest it could be a phallus. This includes a defined urethral opening and features to distinguish the glans from the shaft, the researchers said
Speak against ScienceSolange Rigaud, lead author of the study, explained: ‘Our argument is that if you want to represent something abstract, you choose very specific features that really characterize what you want to represent.’
The pendant was found to be smoother on one side than the other, suggesting that it sat around the neck like a necklace.
Meanwhile, surface wear suggests it’s been handed down through several generations, according to the team.
It remains unclear what the object was supposed to symbolize.
However, not everyone believes in the theory of the University of Bordeaux team.
Speaking to Science, Curtis Runnels, an archaeologist at Boston University who was not involved in the study, said he “should be convinced” it represented a penis.
Until then, he calls it “a small and rather shapeless object.”
The pendant was found in Mongolia in 2016 and has been dated to between 42,400 and 41,900 years old