The earliest condoms were made from animal intestines, oiled silk paper, tortoise shell, and linen, depending on the region and era. These materials predate rubber by centuries, and some remained in use well into the modern age.
Glans Condoms in Ancient Asia
The oldest known condoms appeared in Asia before the 15th century, and they looked nothing like what we picture today. These were glans condoms, small caps that covered only the head of the penis. In China, they were crafted from oiled silk paper or lamb intestines. In Japan, a device called the kabuto-gata was made from tortoise shell or animal horn. These early versions were used primarily for birth control rather than disease prevention, and they were available only to the upper classes.
Linen Sheaths and the Fight Against Syphilis
The first medically documented condom came from the Italian anatomist Gabriele Falloppio, described in a text published in 1564. Falloppio designed a linen sheath soaked in a solution of wine, guaiac wood, and mercury. His version was meant to prevent syphilis, which was devastating Europe at the time, and it was applied after intercourse rather than during it. Falloppio claimed to have tested the sheath on over a thousand men, with none of them becoming infected. While that number is likely exaggerated, it represents one of the earliest recorded attempts at a clinical trial for any preventive device.
Animal Membrane Condoms
By the 1600s and 1700s, condoms made from animal intestines became the standard. The oldest physically surviving condoms were found in a sealed latrine at Dudley Castle in England. Archaeologists recovered fragments of ten individual animal-membrane condoms from a deposit that was sealed in 1647, during the English Civil War. These are the earliest confirmed physical specimens of condoms in post-medieval Europe.
Animal-gut condoms, often called “skins,” were typically made from sheep or lamb intestines. They were not disposable. These condoms were one-size-fits-all and had to be dipped in water before use to soften and prepare them. Users washed and reused them multiple times. Remarkably, animal-intestine condoms never fully disappeared. Sheep-intestine condoms were still being manufactured commercially as late as the 1990s, prized by some users for their natural feel and heat transfer compared to synthetic alternatives.
Rubber Changes Everything
The invention of vulcanized rubber in the mid-1800s brought the first major material shift. Early rubber condoms were thick, had visible seams, and required careful trimming and smoothing by hand. They also had a shelf life of only about three months, and the manufacturing process involved gasoline and benzene, making factories a serious fire hazard.
The real breakthrough came in 1920 with the invention of liquid latex, which is rubber suspended in water. Latex condoms were stronger, thinner, and far easier to produce. They lasted up to five years on a shelf, compared to three months for their solid-rubber predecessors. The water-based manufacturing process also eliminated the explosive solvents that had plagued earlier factories. Latex quickly became the dominant material and remains the most widely used condom material today.
Why Animal Materials Lasted So Long
It might seem surprising that animal-intestine condoms survived alongside rubber and latex for over a century. The reason is simple: natural membranes transmit body heat in a way that synthetic materials don’t, and many users preferred the sensation. Lambskin condoms are still sold today, though with an important caveat. While they block sperm effectively, their natural pores are large enough to allow viruses through, making them less effective at preventing sexually transmitted infections than latex or synthetic alternatives.