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Codpiece

A codpiece (from Middle English cod 'scrotum') is a triangular piece that attached to the front of men's hose, covering the fly. It may be held in place by ties or buttons. It was an important fashion item of European clothing during the 15th–16th centuries, in the 16th century becoming a firm upwards-pointing projection based on a stiff material such as boiled leather, or in plate armour, steel.

In the modern era, similar clothing pieces are worn in the leather subculture, and in performance costumes, such as for rock and metal musicians. A similar device with rigid construction, an athletic cup, is used as protective gear for male athletes.

Portrait of Antonio Navagero (1565) with an accentuated codpiece, oil on canvas by Giovanni Battista Moroni, Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan

Portrait of Antonio Navagero (1565) with an accentuated codpiece, oil on canvas by Giovanni Battista Moroni, Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan

Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, by Titian, 1533, shown wearing a codpiece with short doublet, Museo del Prado.

Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, by Titian, 1533, shown wearing a codpiece with short doublet, Museo del Prado.

Jockstrap

penis sheath used in Papua New Guinea

Koteka

Kynodesme

Willy warmer

1500–1550 in fashion

1550–1600 in fashion

Ashelford, Jane: The Art of Dress: Clothing and Society 1500–1914, Abrams, 1996.  0-8109-6317-5.

ISBN

Ashelford, Jane. The Visual History of Costume: The Sixteenth Century. 1983 edition ( 0-89676-076-6), 1994 reprint (ISBN 0-7134-6828-9).

ISBN

Edge, David: Arms and Armor of Medieval Knights: An Illustrated History of Weaponry in the Middle Ages.

ed. Dynasties: Painting in Tudor and Jacobean England 1530–1630. New York: Rizzoli, 1995. ISBN 0-8478-1940-X.

Hearn, Karen

Bodemer, Brett: " Archived 2011-06-29 at the Wayback Machine."

Pantagruel's Seventh Chapter:The Title as Suspect Codpiece

Notes


Further reading

Media related to Codpieces at Wikimedia Commons

Codpieces in art from The Guardian

New York Times interview with a codpiece maker