It is well known to historians that in art and literature a sausage is rarely just a sausage. In this amusing and informative collection, we learn that in Renaissance Italy a bird was rarely a
bird and even trees can provide more than shade. Matthews-Grieco (history Syracuse University, Florence, Italy) edited the essays as well as contributing the first, on prints that could range
from erotic to pornographic, often just by eliminating extra foliage. Many of the essays focus on the narrow line between licit and illicit behavior. The justification of erotic scenes as
images of classical or Biblical exempla is an example of this blurry boarder as are the many examples of sexually graphic wedding gifts. The first section deals with erotic images in art,
including the timeless occupation of doodling in the margins. The second section concentrates on social customs. Marriage is treated in an essay on the interminable public rituals associated
with the Venetian upper class and in the casual, pre-Tridentine customs of cohabitation among the lower classes. The way in which sexual banter was part of male bonding is detailed through
semi-private letters. The importance of the patronage of a high class courtesan to male prestige is a facet of the Italian Renaissance not often addressed in academic studies. The book is well
illustrated with several color plates. Annotation 穢2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
