Title: Unmanned: An Unnatural History of Human Castration | Psychology Today
Headings: Unmanned: An Unnatural History of Human Castration
Robert D. Martin Ph.D.
Unmanned: An Unnatural History of Human Castration
From unkindest cut to soaring songs of praise.
Effects of castration
Skeletons of castrati
Castrati in the Sistine Chapel
Castration and lifespan
References

Content: Oftentimes, the dangling scent glands at the penis base have been misreported as the beaver’s testes. Effects of castration
Castration after puberty, turning men into eunuchs, diminishes or completely eliminates the sex drive. Muscle mass, physical strength, and body hair are all typically reduced, and eunuchs are usually beardless. Breast enlargement is also common. In the most familiar example of castration to prevent cuckoldry, eunuchs have often been used as harem guards. Historically, however, eunuchs — seen as less likely to stir up unrest — were far more widely engaged as servants, military commanders and senior political officials. The first records of deliberate castration to produce eunuchs, from the Sumerian city of Lagash, date back some 4,000 years. In China, the eunuch system, which dates back almost as far, was firmly entrenched in the imperial culture and persisted through two dozen dynasties until 1911, when the last emperor was deposed. Castration was performed not only as a punishment but also as a prerequisite for entering imperial service. Towards the end of the Ming Dynasty in the mid-17th Century, some 70,000 eunuchs were employed to serve the emperor.