In traditional Chinese medicine, a deer penis (Chinese: 鹿鞭; pinyin: lù biān; Vietnamese: Lộc pín) is said to have important therapeutic properties.
Purported properties
editIn Angang, Taiwan, women are reported to consume deer penis during pregnancy as it is said to have a fattening effect and to make the mother and child stronger.[1]
The Mayans were also known to extract the penis of the deer and roast it.[2] Hippocrates recommended consuming deer penis to resolve sexual difficulties.[3]
During the 2008 Summer Olympics in China, the country banned deer penis wine, turtle blood and angelica root supplements from athletes' diets.[4] This is because according to traditional Chinese medicine, deer penis, especially if ingested while soaked in alcohol (deer penis wine), is an effective remedy for athletic injuries. Chinese Olympic officials advised national athletes not to take the traditional remedy because it may contain the banned herb Ephedra. It joined steroids and various stimulants on the list of banned substances. When consumed, a deer penis or tiger penis is also said to enhance strength, and is thought by some to be an aphrodisiac.[5]
Availability
edit
Like turtle's blood and penis, deer penis is one of the "delicacies" served in large jars in Snake Alley, Taipei.[6] It is also served on the Chinese mainland in restaurants such as the Guo Li Zhuang.[7] Deer penis wine can be sold at $12 a glass and often as high as $455 for a two-litre bottle.[8] Deer-antler wine, known as Lurongjiu, is also said to enhance sexual potency in men and to have a warming effect, aiding the joints.[9][10] A deer's penis, turtle's penis, or bull's penis is consumed in restaurants and is known in Singapore to be offered as a soup delicacy.[8]
Popular culture
editPowdered deer penis is mentioned in the 1996 Steven Seagal film The Glimmer Man during the scene where Seagal and Keenen Ivory Wayans enter a Chinese herbal store.
Weebam-Na, a miscellaneous character in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, mentions powdered deer penis when asked about Leyawiin, the city he resides in.
Deer penis is mentioned in the 2009 episode of The Office "Double Date" when Dwight corrects Michael's statement calling fish sticks an aphrodisiac: "you're thinking of deer penis," Dwight replies.
In Season 1, Episode 5 of The League, Ruxin and Taco go to Chinatown to buy "3 Penis Wine", involving the infusion of deer penises, dog penises, and snake penises. However, the real "Three-Penis Wine" contains a fusion of seal, dog and deer penis.[11]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Charles Stafford (1 June 2006). The Roads of Chinese Childhood: Learning and Identification in Angang. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-02656-7.
- ^ Robert M. Laughlin; Carol Karasik (1988). The People of the Bat: Mayan Tales and Dreams from Zinacantán. Smithsonian Institution Press. ISBN 978-0-87474-590-0.
- ^ Bonnard (1999), p. 24
- ^ "Deer Penis Loses Favor as China's Olympians Fear Drug Testers". Bloomberg. March 23, 2008. Retrieved June 23, 2010.
- ^ Harding, Andrew (September 23, 2006). "Beijing's penis emporium". BBC. Retrieved June 23, 2010.
- ^ The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 274, Atlantic Monthly Co., 1994
- ^ Richard Spencer, On the menu today: horse penis and testicles with a chilli dip, The Telegraph
- ^ a b Jerry Hopkins; Anthony Bourdain; Michael Freeman (2004). Extreme Cuisine: The Weird & Wonderful Foods That People Eat. Tuttle Publishing. p. 99. ISBN 978-0-7946-0255-0.
- ^ Stafford, Charles (1995). The roads of Chinese childhood: learning and identification in Angang. Cambridge University Press. p. 98. ISBN 978-0-521-46574-8.
- ^ Bonnard (1999), p. 125
- ^ "Three-Penis Rice Wine". 11 February 2011.
Bibliography
edit- Pérez, William, Noelia Vazquez, and Rodolfo Ungerfeld. "Gross anatomy of the male genital organs of the pampas deer (Ozotoceros bezoarticus, Linnaeus 1758)." Anatomical science international 88.3 (2013): 123–129.
- Stewart, David W. "Letters to the Editor: Male Genitalia of Red Deer (Cer Vus Elaphus)." New Zealand veterinary journal 31.7 (1983): 122-122.
- Valerius Geist (January 1998). Deer of the World: Their Evolution, Behaviour, and Ecology. Stackpole Books. ISBN 978-0-8117-0496-0.
- Mesang-Nalley, Marlene, Henderiana Belli, and Ristika Handarini. "Anatomy and Morphometry of Timor Deer (Cervus timorensis) Stags Reproductive Organs."
- Yueqiu, Guo, et al. "Identification of Deer Testes and Penis and its Counterfeiting Products by Immuno-agglutination Testing Archived 2014-02-28 at the Wayback Machine." CHINESE PHARMACEUTICAL AFFAIRS 2 (2000): 017.
- Vidyadaran, M. K., et al. "Male genital organs and accessory glands of the lesser mouse deer, Tragulus javanicus." Journal of mammalogy (1999): 199–204.
- Stewart, D. W. (1983). "Letters to the Editor". New Zealand Veterinary Journal. 31 (7): 122. doi:10.1080/00480169.1983.34991. PMID 16030982.
- Marburger, R. G., R. M. Robinson, and J. W. Thomas. "Genital hypoplasia of white-tailed deer." Journal of Mammalogy 48.4 (1967): 674–676.
- Kennaugh, J. H.; Chapman, D. I.; Chapman, N. G. (2009). "Seasonal changes in the prepuce of adult Fallow deer (Dama dama) and its probable function as a scent organ". Journal of Zoology. 183 (3): 301. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7998.1977.tb04189.x.
- Bonnard, Marc (1999). The Viagra Alternative: The Complete Guide to Overcoming Erectile Dysfunction Naturally. Inner Traditions / Bear & Company. ISBN 978-0-89281-789-4.
- Jonathan Balcombe (2 May 2006). Pleasurable Kingdom: Animals and the Nature of Feeling Good. Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-230-55227-2. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
- Leonard Lee Rue III; Leonard Lee Rue, III (1 November 2004). The Deer of North America: The Standard Reference on All North American Deer Species--Behavior, Habitat, Distribution, and More. LYONS Press. ISBN 978-1-59228-465-8. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
- Robert S. Youngquist; Walter R. Threlfall (23 November 2006). Current Therapy in Large Animal Theriogenology. Elsevier Health Sciences. ISBN 978-1-4377-1340-4. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
- Tim Glover (30 June 2012). Mating Males: An Evolutionary Perspective on Mammalian Reproduction. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-107-00001-8. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
- Elizabeth Marshall Thomas (15 September 2009). The Hidden Life of Deer. HarperCollins. pp. 237–. ISBN 978-0-06-190209-3. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
- George A. Feldhamer; William J. McShea (26 January 2012). Deer: The Animal Answer Guide. JHU Press. pp. 72–. ISBN 978-1-4214-0387-8. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
- Rebecca Stefoff (30 November 2007). Deer. Marshall Cavendish. pp. 24–. ISBN 978-0-7614-2534-2. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
- Walter Penn Taylor (1961). The Deer of North America: The White-tailed, Mule and Black-tailed Deer, Genus Odocoileus, Their History and Management. Stackpole Company. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
