Moving Inland
Changing Perceptions of Sex
Hierogamy: The Great Rite
Sacrificial Gods
Of Boys, Bulls and Kings
     Cultural Significance

Ongoing Research


All photos, maps and other images can be clicked on to take you to the site where we found the image. If you own the copyright to any such image and do not want us to publicise it for you in this way, please contact the webmaster and it will be removed.

  The Sacred Marriage

Changing Perceptions of Sex

Review "The Sacred Marriage: Changing Perceptions of Sex".

“We are not a classic pair-bonded species. We are not a polygamous, tournament species either…. What we are, officially, … is a tragically confused species.” (Robert Sapolsky)

“Several types of evidence suggest our pre-agricultural (prehistoric) ancestors lived in groups where most mature individuals would have had several ongoing sexual relationships at any given time. Though often casual, these relationships were not random or meaningless. Quite the opposite: they reinforced crucial social ties holding these highly interdependent communities together.” (Chris Ryan & Cacilda Jethá 2010)

Part 1. Humans are (Blank) -ogamous by Patrick F. Clarkin, Ph.D., July 2011. This extensive (18 part) series of articles about human sexuality is excellent. Part 1 starts here. (Note: there are 22 parts to this series!)

Here is a quote from Part 1: "To begin, let me say that I side with Sapolsky. Individuals may figure out what works best for themselves in terms of balancing sex, love, intimacy, and commitment, but collectively we are a tragically confused species. The signposts in our biology and behavior suggest as much. This seems to originate from a few places: our evolutionary past, the overlapping – but independent – drives for love, sex and reproduction, individual variation in sexual preferences and drives, and the powerful effect of culture. One would think, given the importance of sex and mating in evolution, that natural selection would have put a straight-jacket on it and given us a stricter blueprint to follow, as other species seem to have. That doesn’t seem to be the case, however." Read more.