The place and value of bestophilia in perversions.

An attempt is made to place bestophilia in cultural, clinical, and theoretical perspective. Archeological and anthropological documentation and records of the widespread appearance in mythology of this practice are cited. This archaic form of perversion is still practiced in rural environments and isolated communities. The treatment of a man who grew up in such an environment gave the author the opportunity to study this form of perversion. The correlation of clinical findings with culturally sanctioned bestophilia provides a bridge between the understanding of psychopathology and anthropological variation.