The female leg is an erotic phenomenon. It is not a sexual organ and closely resembles its male counterpart – so why should it be sexualized? Nevertheless, throughout almost all times and cultures, women's legs have been covered, hidden, and so tabooed that they transformed into objects of intense sexual obsession. Under Queen Victoria, the word "leg" was already frowned upon in polite British society, as it was feared that merely its sound could drive men to distraction with desire. Even today, 100 years after the unveiling of women's legs, they still exert a strong erotic allure.

In the third volume of her sensationally successful series on erotic body parts, Dian Hanson explores how the leg gradually became the central theme of the women's movement – from the French Revolution to the Sexual Revolution. Over 400 photos document the first burlesque "leg shows" of the early 19th century, the wild silk stocking wearers of the 1920s, the nylon craze of the 1940s, the polka-dotted appearance of the stiletto heel in the 1950s, and finally the Golden Age of leg magazines in the 1960s.

The leg lover will be delighted to learn who first wore high-heeled shoes, how nylon stockings became war equipment, why Betty Grable had million-dollar legs, how everything began with Elmer Batters, and what actually makes feet so attractive – all illustrated by vintage photographs from master leg artists like Irving Klaw, Peter Gowland, Bunny Yeager, Batters, and others.