Although it is praised that prostitution did not exist during the USSR and that sex was intended only for reproductive purposes, most people suspect that this is not true. Of course, it was, only it was not allowed to talk about it in public or to express it in any wider way. Soviet-era art also did not feature sex or erotic films, and only women and men could be seen in art films, and in the next frame, they stood happily at the door of the maternity hospital.
However, despite the fact that sex was taboo during the USSR, one could still find a sex toy here and there. If a working man endured, he or she could buy something equivalent to what anyone can now find in the simplest sex shop. Of course, the assortment was not too wide. Moreover, the vast majority of these subjects were never associated with the provision of intimate pleasure. These devices were commonly referred to as “electric face and neck massagers” or “muscle tone massagers” and the like.
Pharmacy as ‘sex shop’
Until the end of the eighties, people could buy condoms made in the Bakovskaya factory, which were powdered with talcum powder (white powder). In order to use them normally, a friction-reducing lubricant was needed – usually medical or cosmetic Vaseline, which could be bought at a pharmacy.
Although condoms were available, there was no talk of sex toys. The Soviet woman was not allowed to think of anything like that, she had to think about building communism and fulfilling five-year plans in one year.
The most interesting thing is that pharmacies offered different “vibrators”, but they were called differently. For example, one of these devices was the so-called electric massager VP-1 to increase muscle tone. This device came with four different rubber shapes of different shapes in pink, which was not very typical of the gray industry of the USSR.
There was also a device called “Pulsar”. It had a curved handle and several interchangeable rubber sleeves. The USSR quality mark was printed on the packaging of the device. It’s time to say that not only can we build rockets and submarines, but also each other’s vibrator!
There was another such device – “Vigor”. It had several modifications. The latest model had four different couplings and several vibration speeds and cost as much as 20 rubles.
Even those living in the USSR could buy a device called “Tonuss-1”. It was already equipped with five different couplings and was able to vibrate at a frequency of 50 hertz. There were many others: VMP , Kharkovchanka , Elvo, Charodey, and so on. All this could be bought in pharmacies.
A special design for the bravest
USSR citizens could also buy sex toys from fraternal Polish land. They were much safer in this respect because they had created a vibrator that looked more like a man’s fall. The Polish vibrator was called – “tourist massage apparatus”. Why tourism? Because it didn’t have a plug. So you can take it on a trip. It was equipped with two R14 batteries.
Unfortunately, this sex toy in the Soviet Union could only be bought ‘for a blat’, and formally it was considered a massage machine. Interestingly, the device came with instructions with an erotic touch, in which a half-naked woman massages her face and then uses this device on her body lower and lower.
What can we conclude from this? It is clear that in Soviet times, pharmacies were fully functioning as sex toy stores. Moreover, no one ever called these things by their real names, and, most likely, they were especially reluctant to have them in their homes.