In 1621, a brothel keeper wrote a petition to Tokugawa Ieyasu, the shogun and ruler of Japan. He made an argument that it would be good for everyone if a “courtesan quarter”—a red-light district—were set up in Edo (the city which later became Tokyo). The shogun agreed, and unsurprisingly, the brothel keeper was appointed the master of the new pleasure quarter. Yoshiwara, meaning “field of reeds” because it was basically built on a drained swamp, was completed in 1626. From the moment the gates opened for business, until the district was closed by the government in 1959, Yoshiwara remained a legendary porno version of Disney World for wealthy and lusty adult gentlemen with an itch to be scratched. But for the women who worked there, it was a prison from which they couldn’t escape. Without further beating around the bush—ahem, my apologies—here are ten weird sex things that one could purchase from shops in and around Yoshiwara and elsewhere in the city, if one were so inclined.
10 Shunga (Weird Sex Prints)
Shunga, literally “spring pictures,” were vivid colour woodblock prints that unabashedly displayed erotic scenes. Buyers could walk straight to the printer’s stall and pick up a set, using them as both visual instruction for newly‑wed wives and lucky charms for samurai heading into battle. Though the shogunate tried to ban them, the demand never faded. Modern fans of hentai will recognize the lineage—especially the infamous tentacle motifs that trace back to Hokusai’s “The Dream of the Fisherman’s Wife,” a shunga showing a sensual lady entwined with octopuses.
9 Erotic Novels, Songs, and Poetry
Japan’s love of metaphor shows up in its erotic literature. Novels, bawdy songs, and poetry brimming with poetic nicknames—like the “forty‑eight folds” for a lady’s parts or “pine mushroom” for a gentleman’s—were popular fare. Patrons could hire male entertainers (the male counterpart to geisha) to sing, play, and tell dirty jokes while waiting for a courtesan. Lovers also exchanged beautifully penned love letters or erotic novels to set the mood. High‑class courtesans, however, required genuine gifts and gestures rather than mere purchase.
8 Incense Sticks
Time was a precious commodity in Yoshiwara. With no mechanical clocks, merchants relied on incense sticks that burned for a set number of minutes. When the fragrant coil dwindled to its last ember, the gentleman’s allotted time was up and he had to depart. Perfumed incense, especially the expensive varieties used to scent hair and clothing, made a generous gift for a courtesan—the profit from such sales often exceeded the courtesan’s own earnings.
7 Mountain Yam
The wild mountain yam, a long, bumpy tuber, was a staple in household cooking—but it also doubled as a discreet sex aid. In high‑class establishments, a patron was expected to satisfy the courtesan as well as himself; if his vigor fell short, the brittle yam could be employed for extra stimulation. Other materials used similarly included cow and water‑buffalo horns, tortoiseshell, papier‑mâché, ivory, and bone.
6 Powdered Bone
Enter the “penis bone” potion: a vial of powdered animal bone or horn marketed as the legendary bone of a famously well‑endowed monk. Though humans lack a penis bone, eager gentlemen mixed the powder into sake, hoping some of the monk’s virility would rub off. Other potency boosters of the era included snapping‑turtle blood, elephant urine, and tobacco nicknamed “courtesan grass.”
5 Konnyaku
Konnyaku, a firm jelly‑like root vegetable, served the broke or the bored. After cooking, it turned into a dense slab that could be rolled in cloth to form a tube and warmed in water. Gentlemen used the slippery jelly to stimulate a lover’s delicate parts—or to masquerade as something entirely different when they were simply too tired for the real thing.
4 Taro Ribbon
Peel a long, flat strip from a taro stem and you have a ribbed ribbon that could be wrapped around a gentleman’s member in overlapping layers, then tied off for added pleasure. Poets sometimes likened the device to a tapeworm because it tended to unravel mid‑use. Women could also fashion the same material into a finger‑wrap for similar effect.
3 Fingers and Hair From Corpses
Among the most macabre tokens were locks of hair, fingernails, or even amputated pinkie fingers. Courtesans, who often had many lovers, couldn’t sacrifice their own hair or digits, so they turned to temple priests who harvested such relics from deceased women. The grim gifts were presented with theatrical flair—blood‑stained bandages, tears, and a pinkie sealed in a box—signalling ultimate devotion.
2 Likeness Pictures
Unlike the explicit shunga, “likeness‑pictures” were tasteful colour woodblock prints showcasing actors—often female impersonators—or courtesans in their most extravagant attire, occasionally with a daring glimpse of private parts. Both men and women bought these prints to admire their crushes from a safe distance, and some owners even used them as a source of private arousal.
1 Wife‑Shape (Edo Shape)
The “wife‑shape,” also called an “Edo shape,” was an early analogue of the modern kokeshi doll. A likeness‑picture formed the head, while the body was built from rolled clothing stuffed with warm, mashed yams or konnyaku jelly. Gentlemen would bring this multi‑purpose doll to bed, using it for companionship, practice, or simply as a quirky novelty.
Yoshiwara was just one of the pleasure districts in Edo. Another was Yoshichô, home to male prostitutes. While some of these items sound downright bizarre, they illustrate how the average Edoite truly knew how to party—provided the party involved a pervy yam, a powdered bone, or a fragrant incense stick.