An Illustrated History of Sexual Domination

Don’t look until we say the word.

Fifty Shades of Grey may currently be driving handcuff sales, but popular depictions of BDSM have been around since Marquis du Sade got weird in 18th-century France. Sade’s descriptions were far more sordid than anything E.L. James dreamt up (a moody millionaire has nothing on a certified torturer). What the inheritor of the sadistic tradition is offering is a beginner’s guide to sexual depravity. And that’s not nothing. Most people – notably women – want to dip their toes in molten wax before jumping in. 


Anyone looking to actual explore the world of bondage should have a bit more perspective – if only so they can consider broader possibilities. Here’s the history of people tying each other up for fun. We’re intrigued to see what comes next.

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