# Glory Holes? Really? Straight dope please! **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 12, 2006, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683 "2006-01-12T17:18:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Nature\_s\_Call](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nature_s_call/32/19006_2.png) [@Nature\_s\_Call](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nature_s_Call)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/1 "2006-01-12T17:18:12Z")
My jaw dropped when, during the course of [this thread’s](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=353476) discussion, I was introduced to the term “glory hole” For others, like me, who may not have encountered this term: A hole is drilled in the partition between two bathroom stalls in the men’s room. This is done as a service to those seeking “random/anonymous encounters.” The hole is used thusly: Bob sticks his dick into the hole. Bill, on the other side, sees said dick and “grabs hold.” Penis ensues. Now, I’d heard of the idea of “through the hole bathroom shenanigans” - I’d just dismissed the idea as urban myth - a product of someone’s overactive imagination on seeing a popped out knothole in a wooden bathroom stall. When I learned that not only was there a term for this, but an apparent widespread knowledge/belief in their use, well, I had to open this thread and say, “No way, really?!?!.” Assuming glory holes are truly used: How did the practice start? I mean, the first guy ever to do so had to drill the first hole, stick it in, hope for the best. What luck that the first ever guy to witness this from the other side said, “Hmmm, lemme just take care of that…” Even after the first time… For the penetrator, wouldn’t slivers or other unwanted friction from the wall make this an undesirable activity? What about the fear of someone kicking, karate chopping, or otherwise inducing pain/damage? And if these things are drilled for universal, random access - what about problems of diameter and angles? Surely one size does not fit all. Are there conventions of etiquette? I’m sitting there, minding my own business when - pop! If I oblige, am I entitled to reciprocation? Which form is most frequent: mouth? hand? urk, other? What is the correct way to refuse - simply ignore, or is there a tap-tap-tap code? I assume condoms are the rule, yes? What’s the straight dope here? Really. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/2 "2006-01-12T17:44:25Z")
You’ve never encountered the term? I first heard about them in some novel I read, as a teen. It was set in 17th Century Europe, and it was about the castrati singers. It was the first time I learned castrati could still have sex. Anyway, they were in a hostel together, and glory holes were the norm. I’ve also heard about them in porn clubs, and all over Europe. (Those Europeans!) Never seen one myself, but I’ve seen them in porn movies - don’t you watch/read porn? As for wood shavings, etc., I don’t know. Perhaps they’re smoothed out. And I would think that one size may not fit all, but _most_. As for etiquette? See, in that thread I was shocked to find out that at least one person sees them even in libraries. I couldn’t possibly imagine what I would do if one came through the wall of the bathroom at the library. Probably edge out, really carefully, and RUN for it. I’m a girl, BTW. Anyway, here’s Wiki’s take on it: [Glory Holes](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glory_hole_%28sexual%29). > [@](#): > > Glory holes in normal public lavatories are mainly used as peep holes, although certain areas are established meeting places at which people can engage in anonymous sex. > (snip) > Due to the fear of arrest or assault, few males will insert their penis in a glory hole without invitation from the person on the other side of the partition. A common signal by a willing participant is to insert one or more fingers in the hole, often accompanied by a beckoning motion.(snip) > Similarly, the person on the “receiving” side of the partition could severely injure the “giver,” either maliciously or accidentally. The hole itself could even cause serious cuts or abrasions to a penis; in some sex clubs and adult theaters, the glory hole is given a protective surface (even one as crude as duct tape) to prevent such injuries. Using a glory hole in a public place (such as a restroom) also poses a legal threat, as such behavior could be considered public indecency or lewdness; additionally, participants often violate any local sodomy laws that may exist. Enjoy! ---
**Author:** ![Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/779978/32.png) [@Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amazon_Floozy_Goddess)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/3 "2006-01-12T17:49:52Z")
For one, I think someone who would stick their johnson through a hole not knowing who or what was on the other side, would probably not be too concerned about using a condom. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/4 "2006-01-12T17:54:45Z")
Completely off-topic, but my friend’s husband, who is at least semi-homophobic, has been taking glass blowing lessons. Turns out the hole in the furnace where one heats the glass is called a glory hole. Imagine my delighted and thoroughly juvenile sniggering at the thought of his sticking his rod into a glory hole and blowing. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/5 "2006-01-12T17:58:28Z")
An old coworker of mine was into glass blowing, and as it turns out there’s a type of furnace called a glory hole furnace. He had a bit of shock the first time he tried to get some info on the furnace, and did a web search for “glory hole”. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/6 "2006-01-12T17:59:40Z")
or maybe it’s the hole in any furnace, as **Otto** describes. It’s been a while since I talked to my friend. ---
**Author:** ![Mathochist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c89c15/32.png) [@Mathochist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mathochist)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/7 "2006-01-12T18:04:08Z")
> [@Amazon Floozy Goddess](#): > > For one, I think someone who would stick their johnson through a hole not knowing who or what was on the other side, would probably not be too concerned about using a condom. There’s actually a well worked-out protocol, which includes signaling insistence on condom use. ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/8 "2006-01-12T18:09:12Z")
There was a glory hole at my college campus library on the second floor. I noticed it when I sat to do some business and saw a circle had been cut out of the partition and filled with paper towels. On a local gold mine tour, I discovered that he term ‘glory hole’ is also used in gold mines as some sort of vertically dug hole. I asked the tour guide about it when others had walked away. He said people sometimes snicker when he uses the term, but many people are clueless about the double meaning. ---
**Author:** ![Rodgers01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/9 "2006-01-12T18:21:56Z")
Like I said in the other thread, I have **never** seen one in any public bathroom, and I’d be extremely surprised to do so out of a very scuzzy bar. And heck, I’ve been to some scuzzy bars, and even there I never saw one. (Admittedly, I don’t go to gay bars, where they’d probably be most common, and even the regular bars I go to I almost always just use the urinals.) So as far as I know, it could well be an urban legend. I don’t even know where I encountered the term – a book, maybe. So even if they do exist, they’re extremely uncommon, AFAIK. ---
**Author:** ![Nature\_s\_Call](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nature_s_call/32/19006_2.png) [@Nature\_s\_Call](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nature_s_Call)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/10 "2006-01-12T18:31:07Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > You’ve never encountered the term? > > … > > Never seen one myself, but I’ve seen them in porn movies - don’t you watch/read porn? Gosh, now I feel so unworldly, but prior to that thread, no. When I first saw the term used, I thought it was an _ad lib_ euphemism. … What porn I have seen has been limited mainly to still photos of the female form. ---
**Author:** ![picker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/picker/32/13969_2.png) [@picker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picker)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/11 "2006-01-12T18:36:04Z")
[old joke reference] Every day but Thursday. Why not Thursday? That’s your day in the barrel. [/ojr] ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/12 "2006-01-12T18:39:30Z")
> [@Bearflag70](#): > > On a local gold mine tour, I discovered that he term ‘glory hole’ is also used in gold mines as some sort of vertically dug hole. I asked the tour guide about it when others had walked away. He said people sometimes snicker when he uses the term, but many people are clueless about the double meaning. Hence the Glory Hole found in the [Calico Mine ride](http://www.lottaliving.com/knotts/calico.shtml) at Knott’s berry Farm in Buena Park, Ca. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/13 "2006-01-12T18:41:31Z")
> [@](#): > > There’s actually a well worked-out protocol, which includes signaling insistence on condom use. I imagine these fingers wiggling in the hole, and the guy on the other side going: “One word. Two syllables. First syllable sounds like _one_ . Bun? Done? Fun? Con? Con??? Sounds like Con? Second syllable…” ---
**Author:** ![Nature\_s\_Call](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nature_s_call/32/19006_2.png) [@Nature\_s\_Call](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nature_s_Call)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/14 "2006-01-12T18:44:57Z")
Rdrr! ---
**Author:** ![Crotalus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crotalus/32/41_2.png) [@Crotalus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crotalus)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/15 "2006-01-12T19:01:35Z")
They are more common, in my experience, than some here think. I have seen them in rest stop rest rooms on the interstate highway system, and in mall restrooms in the Baltimore area. ---
**Author:** ![Ichbin\_Dubist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/51bf81/32.png) [@Ichbin\_Dubist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ichbin_Dubist)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/16 "2006-01-12T19:10:29Z")
Way back in college in 1984 I wanted to name a punk band I was in The Gloryholes, but none of the other, um, members would have any of it. I had not seen such a hole, but had heard the term and thought it was amusingly opaque. Maybe I just should have said, “Band name.” Actually, I would be surprised if there hasn’t been a band of that name at some point. ---
**Author:** ![Avarie537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/48db29/32.png) [@Avarie537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avarie537)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/17 "2006-01-12T19:27:02Z")
I’ve never seen any in public, but I have seen them at a swinger’s club (no, neither my husband or I participated). ---
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/18 "2006-01-12T19:28:24Z")
> [@](#): > > Six of the eleven booths had a “glory hole” in a common wall that connected two adjacent booths. (7) Each glory hole was approximately four inches in diameter and located about three feet above the floor. It allowed customers in adjacent booths to interact sexually, or otherwise, with each other. The booths did not have any signs identifying which ones had glory holes, but the holes were big enough to be obvious to anyone entering a booth with one. > > . . . . > Bowen, who had never seen Lawson before, gave Lawson the video and pointed him towards the booth area. Customers previewing videos were not told to go to or stay in a particular booth but were allowed to “pretty much do whatever they want” in the back area. [State v. Lawson](http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=hi&vol=2003_11/ica24665&invol=1) (Haw. App. 2003). > [@](#): > > The urinal and toilet were separated by a partition. Sergeant Carney testified that there was a “glory” hole in the partition, which he described as a hole punched in the partition so that men can engage in sexual activity. > > According to Sergeant Carney, he was too upset to urinate because he observed appellant watching him through the “glory” hole in the wall. Sergeant Carney then asked appellant, “What are you looking for?” Appellant replied that he would like to “suck” him. When Carney replied, “Excuse me,” appellant repeated his comment. [State of Ohio Metroparks v. Lasher](http://www.danpinello.com/Lasher.htm) (Ohio App. 1999) ---
**Author:** ![flight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bbce88/32.png) [@flight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flight)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/19 "2006-01-12T19:33:34Z")
Here are two pictures of a [glory](http://bigpicture.typepad.com/writing/images/glory_hole_1.jpg) [hole](http://bigpicture.typepad.com/writing/images/glory_hole_2.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2006, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683/20 "2006-01-12T19:44:48Z")
The Meese Commission discovered glory holes, and they briefly became famous when the report was issued in the mid-1980s > [@](#): > > Recommendation 89. Holes enabling inter-booth sexual contact between patrons should be prohibited in the peep show booths. > [@](#): > > RECOMMENDATION 32: > State and Local public health authorities should investigate conditions within “Adults Only” Pornographic outlets and arcades and enforce the laws against any health violations found on those premises. > > Testimony before the Commission has revealed that sexual acts often occur in the peep booths located in many “Adults Only” pornographic outlets and arcades.[303] Acts such as fellatio, sodomy, and masturbation are common .[304] Some of these establishments have “glory holes” drilled through the walls of the peep booths to permit individuals to engage in anonymous sex with the occupant of the adjoining booth .[305] Upon examination of the interior of these booths, police often find evidence of urine, human feces and semen.[306] > > The public health risks posed by this anonymous sexual activity are quite obvious. The public health department in Houston, Texas, reported 214 cases of syphilis and gonorrhea during three months of 1985.[307] Of those infected individuals, 10.7 percent reported they had performed sexual acts in “Adult Only” pornographic outlets.[308] Because of the anonymous nature of these sexual encounters, public health officials find it impossible to trace the origin of the disease.[309] Concern about the spread of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) has made this situation even more significant. Similar risks to public health are posed by massage parlors, brothels, and establishments promoting “Piercing”[310] and other sado-masochistic sexual activities. > > While this Commission does not condone or support the existence of these businesses dealing in obscene materials, it urges state and local public health officials to inspect the premises of adult bookstores and arcades in their jurisdictions and vigorously enforce the law against all public health violations found on those premises. > [@](#): > > In addition to movie viewing, the booths also provide places for anonymous sexual relations.[2170] Many booths are equipped with a hole in the side wall between the booths to allow patrons to engage in anonymous sex.[2171] The holes are used for oral and anal sexual acts.[2172] Sexual activity in the booths involves mostly males participating in sexual activities with one another.[2173] However, both heterosexual and homosexual men engage in these activities.[2174] The anonymity provided by the “glory holes” allows the participants to fantasize about the gender and other characteristics of their partners.[2175] [http://www.porn-report.com/](http://www.porn-report.com/) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glory-holes-really-straight-dope-please/339683.md?page=2)