Author Description

A Brief History of Pornography<br/>From Sacred Symbols to Streaming Screens<br/>Tracing the path from paleolithic fertility figurines to the algorithms of the internet age, A Brief History of Pornography explores how human societies have represented, celebrated, and censored sex for more than 30,000 years.<br/>Once a sacred force depicted in temples and myth, erotic imagery was later banished to the shadows — only to return through printing presses, photography, cinema, and the digital revolution. In this bold and deeply researched cultural history, author Aisha Dow explores how erotic art evolved into what we now call pornography, revealing how each era’s desires — and fears — are etched into the images it creates.<br/>Moving from prehistoric carvings and Greek sculpture to the rise of Victorian moralism, the Enlightenment’s libertine presses, and the explosive democratization of online porn, this book uncovers a hidden thread running through human civilization: our enduring fascination with the body, pleasure, and power.