The rich ornamentation emphasises supposed subplots: whilst the devil laughs down from above, the sheep and goat are surrounded by herbs, alluding to the herbalist, a figure who, historically, was often sentenced to death as a witch. The buttocks, spread apart by hands in the lower section, echo both the exhibition’s subtitle and the content of the centrally placed text panel. The term Unzucht was used in numerous religions, as well as in state edicts and laws, to encompass reprehensible sexual acts, including sodomy – a synonym for anal intercourse between homosexuals – but also sex outside marriage

Text by Johanna Engemann