Ever wanted to know all there is to know about the history of the vibrator? Maybe it’s an idea to head to San Francisco! It’s the home of the Good Vibrations museum, and that houses a huge collection of antique vibrators, from the late 1800’s up through the 1970’s.
Originally the vibrator was made as a treatment of ‘hysteria’. Women that suffered from faintness, nervousness, sexual desire (yes, that was a sickness back then!), insomnia, etc, etc, were often diagnosed with hysteria. In 1859 the physician George Taylor claimed a quarter of all women suffered from hysteria, later another physician catalogued 75 pages of possible symptoms of hysteria (and called it incomplete), so any ailment could fit the diagnosis.
The cause of this all was commonly blamed on sexual frustration, which lead to physicians recommending private clitoral stimulation at home. Women unable to do so received relief via a genital massage from a physician. This eventually lead to the invention of the vibrator.
One of the earliest vibrators was called the Tremoussoir , invented in France in 1734. The first steam powered vibrator was called the “Manipulator” (invented by former mentioned George Taylor). It was loved by doctors who found themselves suffering from fatigued wrists and hands… poor doctors…
Anyway, the Good Vibrations museum is a good place to learn more about this!
Looking for a more modern source of women using vibrators: check The Hun’s search! Happy Hunning!
“’till death do you apart’… well, not necessarily true… The artist Mark Sturkenboom already had a vibrator on the market that contains the ashes of a departed loved one. He just came out with a follow up called ‘Poetic Justice’. The package contains a vibrator with the ashes of a loved one, a scent to bring back memories to the intimate times, a place to store the wedding ring, the music to create a romantic atmosphere.