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All throughout history people have tried to prevent pregnancies with ingenious methods of contraception: many of them crude, some were slightly effective, and others were not.
The oldest know contraceptive was used in Egypt around 1500 BC. The women used a barrier of crocodile dung or honey because it was believed the stickiness of the substance stopped the white fluid from entering the woman. These suppositories probably worked because they discouraged the male partner from wanting intercourse in the first place. Yuck!
The most successful method of birth control, then and now, was abstinence. But this method was only successful for short periods of time unless you were a Priest of Nun who took on a vow of celibacy. Not many people were able to abstain for long. In some cultures they imposed time periods when sex was not allowed such as Lent, various feast days or different religious holidays. This did lower the birth rate somewhat, but really had no basis in birth control.
Another ancient method of birth control was done with a resin or an oil that was applied to the cervix. This form of birth control is referred to as a suppository. Olive oil and honey were some of the most common substances used. This reduced the amount of sperm that could enter the vagina thus lowering the percentile of pregnancies. One of the best suppositories was a cloth soaked in vinegar; the acidity killed the sperm. Of course they didn’t realize this at the time.
A male form of contraception done was called sub-incision. It was probably done as a ritual for some initiation and not necessarily for contraceptive reasons. It was done by cutting a small hole in the male urethra at the base of the penis so that during ejaculation semen leaked out the hole instead of being pushed up into the vagina. If the man wanted children he could put his finger over the hole so that he would ejaculate normally. He also needed to cover the hole when urinating.
Intrauterine devices were also used in ancient times to stop fertilization. Hippocrates indicated that objects inserted into the vagina could stop pregnancy. This method was also used for animals. Arab camel drivers placed a stone inside the female’s uterus before long journeys.
A very common method of contraceptive that is still popular today is coitus interruptus. This is done by the male pulling out of the vagina just prior to ejaculation so that most of the semen does not enter. Another method similar to this is called coitus reservatus, and this was done by the male squeezing the base of penis so that he doesn’t ejaculate.
Neither of these methods are fool proof against pregnancy as some semen escapes before ejaculation occurs. The first method was frowned upon by Catholicism and Judaism and other religions because they felt that men should not waste their seed. The second method did not waste the seed: it just stopped it before it came out. The ancient Chinese taught the second method, believing that if the man saved his unspent seed it could go to his brain, which would give him more strength and intelligence.
The very first modern day contraceptive developed was the male condom. It was developed in 1562 to stop the spread of venereal disease. It was originally called the male sheath and was made of a lubricated linen cloth. Some later sheaths were made of goat bladders, animal intestines, or blowfish intestines. Since condoms were expensive and hard to get men would wash them and use them over.
For the most part it was unknown what caused pregnancy in the earliest times. Some believed that the white fluid that came out of the male had something to do with it. Others really had no idea why women got pregnant and a lot of rituals and folklore was used to prevent pregnancy. For instance, if a women threw corn kernels, apples, or nails into a well or spring at a magical hour she could remain un-pregnant for the month.
Also, if a woman turned a spinning wheel backward at midnight pregnancy would be avoided. Another method was walking over the graves of dead female ancestors to prevent pregnancy.
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