Chastity belt

A chastity belt is a device locked around the wearer's genitals to prevent sexual intercourse. Chastity belts for women were introduced into Europe from Italy, and saw some limited degree of use during the Renaissance period.^[1][2][3]

An early (around 1400) drawing of a chastity belt

A satirical drawing from the 16th century about the uselessness of chastity belts. The young wife says: "No lock is of avail against the cunning of women; there can be no fidelity where love is not present: for that reason will I buy with your money the key I lack".

They were not used until the 16th century, and then only rather rarely. They first became widely available as 19th-century anti-masturbation medical devices.^[2][4] Many of the belts on public display in museums have now been tested to determine their correct age, with the earliest found to originate in the early 1800s.

In modern times, belts for both men and women are used in BDSM.