Ostentatio genitalium

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Ostentatio genitalium (Latin for "display of the genitals") is a term coined by Leo Steinberg in 1983 that refers to artistic emphasis of the genitals of Christ in Renaissance paintings. It can take the form of exposed display, demonstrative hand positions, (self) touch, exaggerated textile draping, etc. The term adapted the existing feature in iconography of the ostentatio vulnerum or "display of wounds", where Christ indicates the wound in his side, as in the Doubting Thomas episode, or depictions of the Man of Sorrows. Ostentatio genitalium was a tendency opposite to the Byzantine practice of depicting a sexless Jesus (with flattened abdomen covered by veils), with the first examples starting around 1260, gaining popularity in the Renaissance, and tapering off in the seventeenth century. In the art of the 15th and 16th centuries in particular, there are numerous examples of the genitals being the focus of depictions not only because of their position, but also because of perspective...

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