An ostrich egg depicting a scene of an enema, as an example of a curiosité and a manifestation of a certain era
An ostrich egg depicting a scene of an enema, as an example of a curiosité and a manifestation of a certain era

Summary/Abstract: This article presents an interdisciplinary analysis of a rare and intriguing artefact, a decorated ostrich egg held in the Zamoyski Museum in Kozłówka, Poland, setting it within the tradition of curiosités and early modern European material culture. The object, engraved with figural scenes, including a notably explicit depiction of an enema procedure, is interpreted through the lenses of iconography, the history of medicine and the social conventions of seventeenth-century Dutch culture. The study explores how the enema, beyond its medical function, operated as a metaphor for sexual desire, moral correction and corporeal control, reflecting the period’s complex attitudes toward gender, the body and propriety. The egg is also considered in relation to the broader phenomenon of luxury ostrich eggs as objets croisés – cross-cultural artefacts that blend exotic material origins with European craftsmanship and emblematic content. Through visual and literary analysis, the article demonstrates how this single object embodies multilayered narratives of curiosity, discipline, eroticism and social satire, while becoming a compelling testament to the symbolic richness and ambiguity characteristic of early modern visual culture.

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