Vol. 32 No. 1 (2026): Studia critica et exegetica: Donum natalicium CAROLO MARTINO LUCARINI ab amicis oblatum
Articles

Juvenal 6. 422–423: Female Genital Massage?

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  • Denis Keyer
Denis Keyer
University of Bern

Published 2026-04-26

Keywords

  • crista,
  • Juvenal,
  • Martial,
  • massage,
  • virago
Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Keyer, D. (2026). Juvenal 6. 422–423: Female Genital Massage?. Hyperboreus, 32(1), 128-135. https://doi.org/10.36950/hyperboreus.v32p1a11

Abstract

Crista in Iuv. 6. 422 does not mean ‘clitoris’, ‘labia’, or ‘pubic hair’; and v. 422–423 do not imply manual stimulation of the female genitals: (1) the woman is described as mannish, and this would undermine her characterization; (2) in a close parallel at Mart. 7. 67, a vigorous massage is mentioned after physical exercises and before drinking and vomiting (v. 8); (3) v. 423 resists an obscene interpretation and suggests slapping as part of the massage (сf. Sen. Epist. 56. 1). Crista is best taken as a metaphor for a muscular nape: cf. ThLL IV. 1209. 70–77 s.v. (crests of dolphins, whales, and crocodiles) and Scr. physiogn. II. 75 Foerster (of prominent vertebrae): aspera cervix tamquam cristata; I. 368 τραχὺς αὐχὴν ὥσπερ λοφιά.

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