The Rijksmuseum has acquired a nearly 200-year-old condom made from sheep intestine, which features an erotic illustration of a nun and clergymen and is now on display as part of a small exhibition on 19th-century sex work. The object, likely a brothel souvenir, has sparked outrage from the conservative Christian group Stichting Civitas Christiana and its youth wing TFP Student Action Europe, who organized a protest outside the museum and circulated flyers calling it an insult to God, the Catholic Church, and the Dutch nation.
The controversy highlights ongoing tensions between religious sensibilities and artistic freedom, with the museum's co-curator Joyce Zelen defending the display as historically significant and humorous, noting that mocking religion is as old as religion itself. The exhibition contextualizes the condom within a period when prostitution was legal in the Netherlands and public health efforts targeted syphilis, underscoring the museum's commitment to presenting provocative historical artifacts that challenge contemporary norms.