Thanks to the German Historical Institute we learn of a woodcut from the second half of the seventeenth century by one Abraham Bach, said to be part of a then “rapidly growing literature on the conditions of a happy marriage and on codes of behavior reinforced gender roles.”

german domestic discipline beatings for marital bliss

“In the first scene of this two-part woodcut, a man beats his wife for being proud, impious, lazy, and drunk”:

German man beats his wife

“In the second scene, a woman beats her husband for gambling, drinking, gluttony, and chasing pretty girls.”

German wife beats her husband

It’s a veritable 17th century Spencer Spanking Plan, I tell you!

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