Sarah Baartman (; 1789 – 29 December 1815), also spelled Sara, sometimes in the diminutive form Saartje (), or Saartjie, and Bartman, Bartmann, was a
Khoekhoe
Khoikhoi ( /ˈkɔɪkɔɪ/ ''KOY-koy'') (or Khoekhoe in Namibian orthography) are the traditionally nomadic pastoralist indigenous population of South Africa. They are often grouped with the hunter-gatherer San (literally "foragers") peop ...
woman who was exhibited as a
freak show
A freak show is an exhibition of biological rarities, referred to in popular culture as "Freak, freaks of nature". Typical features would be physically unusual Human#Anatomy and physiology, humans, such as those uncommonly large or small, t ...
attraction in 19th-century Europe under the name Hottentot Venus, a name that was later attributed to at least one other woman similarly exhibited. The women were exhibited for their
steatopygic body type, uncommon in
Northwestern Europe
Northwestern Europe, or Northwest Europe, is a loosely defined subregion of Europe, overlapping Northern and Western Europe. The term is used in geographic, history, and military contexts.
Geographic definitions
Geographically, Northwestern ...
that was perceived as a curiosity at that time, and became subject of scientific interest as well as of erotic projection.

"Venus" is sometimes used to designate
representations of the female body in arts and cultural anthropology, referring to the
Roman goddess of love and fertility. "
Hottentot" was a Dutch-colonial era term for the indigenous Khoekhoe people of southwestern Africa, which then became commonly used in English,and was shortened to "hotnot" as an offensive term, the term "Hottentot" refers to the tribe, eg. Zulu, Xhosa. The Sarah Baartman story has been called the epitome of racist
colonial exploitation, and of the commodification and
dehumanization
upright=1.2, link=Warsaw Ghetto boy, In his report on the suppression of the Nazi camps as "bandits".
file:Abu Ghraib 68.jpg, Lynndie England pulling a leash attached to the neck of a prisoner in Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse, Abu Ghr ...
of black people.
Life
Early life in the Cape Colony
Baartman was born to a
hosa and Khoekhoefamily in the vicinity of the
Camdeboo Dutch Cape Colony
The Cape of Good Hope () was a Dutch United East India Company (VOC) supplystation in Southern Africa, centered on the Cape of Good Hope, from where it derived its name. The original supply station and the successive states that the area was ...
; a
British colony
A Crown colony or royal colony was a colony governed by England, and then Great Britain or the United Kingdom within the English and later British Empire. There was usually a governor to represent the Crown, appointed by the British monarch on ...
by the time she was an adult. Her birth name is unknown,
but is thought by some to have been Ssehura,
supposedly the closest to her given name. Saartjie is the
diminutive
A diminutive is a word obtained by modifying a root word to convey a slighter degree of its root meaning, either to convey the smallness of the object or quality named, or to convey a sense of intimacy or endearment, and sometimes to belittle s ...
form of Sarah; in
Cape Dutch
Cape Dutch, also commonly known as Cape Afrikaners, were a historic socioeconomic class of Afrikaners who lived in the Western Cape during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The terms have been evoked to describe an affluent, educated sect ...
the use of the diminutive form commonly indicated familiarity, endearment or contempt. Her surname has also been spelt Bartman and Bartmann.
She was an infant when her mother died
[ and her father was later killed by ]Bushmen
The San peoples (also Saan), or Bushmen, are the members of any of the indigenous hunter-gatherer cultures of southern Africa, and the Indigenous peoples of Africa, oldest surviving cultures of the region. They are thought to have diverged fro ...
(San people) while driving cattle.
Baartman spent her childhood and teenage years on Dutch European farms. She went through puberty rites, and kept a small tortoise shell necklace, most likely her mother's, until her death in France. In the 1790s, a free black (a designation for people of enslaved descent) trader named Peter Cesars (also recorded as Caesar[) met her and encouraged her to move to ]Cape Town
Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...
. She lived in Cape Town for at least two years working in households as a washerwoman and a nursemaid, first for Peter Cesars, then in the house of a Dutch man in Cape Town. She finally moved to be a wet-nurse in the household of Peter Cesars' brother, Hendrik Cesars, outside Cape Town in present day Woodstock
The Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held from August 15 to 18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, Woodstock. Billed as "a ...
. There is evidence that she had two children, though both died as babies. She had a relationship with a poor Dutch soldier, Hendrik van Jong, who lived in Hout Bay near Cape Town, but the relationship ended when his regiment left the Cape.
Hendrik Cesars began to show her at the city hospital in exchange for cash, where surgeon Alexander Dunlop worked. Dunlop, (sometimes wrongly cited as William Dunlop), a Scottish military surgeon in the Cape slave lodge, operated a side business in supplying showmen in Britain with animal specimens, and suggested she travel to Europe to make money by exhibiting herself. Baartman refused. Dunlop persisted, and Baartman said she would not go unless Hendrik Cesars came too. He agreed in 1810 to go to Britain to make money by putting Baartman on stage. It is unknown whether Baartman went willingly or was forced, although the acceptance of her earlier refusal could mean that she was coerced, or simply changed her mind when joined by Cesars.
Dunlop was the frontman and driver of the plan to exhibit Baartman. According to a British legal report of 26 November 1810, an affidavit supplied to the Court of King's Bench from a "Mr. Bullock of Liverpool Museum" stated: "some months since a Mr. Alexander Dunlop, who, he believed, was a surgeon in the army, came to him to sell the skin of a Camelopard, which he had brought from the Cape of Good Hope.... Some time after, Mr. Dunlop again called on Mr. Bullock, and told him, that he had then on her way from the Cape, a female Hottentot, of very singular appearance; that she would make the fortune of any person who shewed her in London, and that he (Dunlop) was under an engagement to send her back in two years..." Lord Caledon, governor of the Cape, gave permission for the trip, but later said he regretted it after he fully learned the purpose of the trip.
On display in Europe
Hendrik Cesars and Alexander Dunlop brought Baartman to London in 1810. The group lived together in Duke Street, St. James, the most expensive part of London. In the household were Sarah Baartman, Hendrik Cesars, Alexander Dunlop, and two African boys, possibly brought illegally by Dunlop from the slave lodge in Cape Town.
Dunlop had to have Baartman exhibited and Cesars was the showman. Dunlop exhibited Baartman at the Egyptian Room at the London residence of Thomas Hope at No. 10 Duchess Street, Cavendish Square, London. Dunlop thought he could make money because of Londoners' lack of familiarity with Africans and because of Baartman's pejoratively perceived large buttocks. Crais and Scully allege that: "People came to see her because they saw her not as a person but as a pure example of this one part of the natural world".[ She became known as the "Hottentot Venus" (as was at least one other woman, in 1829). A handwritten note made on an exhibition flyer by someone who saw Baartman in London in January 1811 indicates curiosity about her origins and probably reproduced some of the language from the exhibition; thus the following origin story should be treated with skepticism: "Sartjee is 22 Years old is 4 feet 10 Inches high, and has (for a Hottentot) a good capacity. She lived in the occupation of a Cook at the ]Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope ( ) is a rocky headland on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa.
A List of common misconceptions#Geography, common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Afri ...
. Her Country is situated not less than 600 Miles from the Cape, the Inhabitants of which are rich in Cattle and sell them by barter for a mere trifle. A Bottle of Brandy, or small roll of Tobacco will purchase several Sheep – Their principal trade is in Cattle Skins or Tallow. – Beyond this Nation is an other, of small stature, very subtle & fierce; the Dutch could not bring them under subjection, and shot them whenever they found them. 9 Jany, 1811. .C.? The tradition of freak shows was well established in Europe at this time, and historians have argued that this is at first how Baartman was displayed. Baartman never allowed herself to be exhibited nude,[Strother, Z.S. (1999). "Display of the Body Hottentot", in Lindfors, B., (ed.), ''Africans on Stage: Studies in Ethnological Show Business''. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press: 1–55.] and an account of her appearance in London in 1810 makes it clear that she was wearing a garment, albeit a tight-fitting one.[''The Times'', 26 November 1810, p. 3: "...she is dressed in a colour as nearly resembling her skin as possible. The dress is contrived to exhibit the entire frame of her body, and the spectators are even invited to examine the peculiarities of her form."] She became a subject of scientific interest, albeit of racist bias frequently, as well as of erotic projection. It is alleged she was marketed as the "missing link between man and beast".[
Her exhibition in London just a few years after the passing of the 1807 Slave Trade Act, which abolished the ]slave trade Slave trade may refer to:
* History of slavery - overview of slavery
It may also refer to slave trades in specific countries, areas:
* Al-Andalus slave trade
* Atlantic slave trade
** Brazilian slave trade
** Bristol slave trade
** Danish sl ...
, created a scandal. A British abolitionist society, the African Association
The Association for Promoting the Discovery of the Interior Parts of Africa (commonly known as the African Association), founded in London on 9 June 1788, was a British club dedicated to the exploration of West Africa, with the mission of discov ...
, conducted a newspaper campaign for her release. The British abolitionist Zachary Macaulay
Zachary Macaulay (; 2 May 1768 – 13 May 1838) was a Scottish statistician and abolitionist who was a founder of London University and of the Society for the Suppression of Vice, and a Governor of British Sierra Leone.
Early life
Macaulay wa ...
led the protest, with Hendrik Cesars protesting in response that Baartman was entitled to earn her living, stating: "has she not as good a right to exhibit herself as an Irish Giant or a Dwarf?" Cesars was comparing Baartman to the contemporary Irish giants Charles Byrne and Patrick Cotter O'Brien.[Lederman, Muriel and Ingrid Bartsch (2001). ''The Gender and Science Reader''. New York: Routledge]
p. 351
Macaulay and The African Association took the matter to court and on 24 November 1810 at the Court of King's Bench the Attorney-General began the attempt "to give her liberty to say whether she was exhibited by her own consent." In support he produced two affidavits in court. The first, from William Bullock of Liverpool Museum, was intended to show that Baartman had been brought to Britain by people who referred to her as if she were property. The second, by the Secretary of the African Association, described the degrading conditions under which she was exhibited and also gave evidence of coercion. Baartman was then questioned before an attorney in Dutch, in which she was fluent, via interpreters.
Some historians have subsequently expressed doubts on the veracity and independence of the statement that Baartman then made, although there remains no direct evidence that she was lying.[ She stated that she was not under restraint, had not been sexually abused and had come to London on her own free will.][ She also did not wish to return to her family and understood perfectly that she was guaranteed half of the profits. The case was therefore dismissed.][ She was questioned for three hours. Her statement contradicts accounts of her exhibitions made by Zachary Macaulay of the African Institution and other eyewitnesses.] A written contract was produced, which has been suggested by some interested modern commentators to be a legal subterfuge.
The publicity given by the court case increased Baartman's popularity as an exhibit. She later toured other parts of England and was exhibited at a fair in Limerick, Ireland in 1812. She also was exhibited at a fair at Bury St Edmunds
Bury St Edmunds (), commonly referred to locally as ''Bury,'' is a cathedral as well as market town and civil parish in the West Suffolk District, West Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer map 211: Bury St. Edmunds an ...
in Suffolk
Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...
. On 1 December 1811 Baartman was baptised at Manchester Cathedral
Manchester Cathedral, formally the Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Mary, St Denys and St George, in Manchester, England, is the mother church of the Anglican Diocese of Manchester, seat of the Bishop of Manchester and the c ...
and there is evidence that she got married on the same day.
Later life
She travelled to England of her own free will but, appears to have changed when she travelled to France. A man called Henry Taylor took Baartman there around September 1814. Taylor then sold her to a man sometimes reported as an animal trainer
Animal training is the act of teaching animals specific responses to specific conditions or stimuli. Training may be for purposes such as companionship, detection, protection, and entertainment. The type of training an animal receives will vary ...
, S. Réaux,[ but whose name was actually Jean Riaux and belonged to a ballet master who had been deported from the Cape Colony for seditious behaviour.][ Riaux exhibited her under more pressured conditions for 15 months at the Palais Royal in ]Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
. In France she may have been in effect enslaved, although her exact position remains unclear. In Paris, her exhibition became more clearly entangled with scientific racism
Scientific racism, sometimes termed biological racism, is the pseudoscience, pseudoscientific belief that the Human, human species is divided into biologically distinct taxa called "race (human categorization), races", and that empirical evi ...
. French scientists were curious about whether she had the elongated labia which earlier naturalists such as François Levaillant had purportedly observed other Khoekhoe women to have at the Cape.[Biologist ]Stephen Jay Gould
Stephen Jay Gould ( ; September 10, 1941 – May 20, 2002) was an American Paleontology, paleontologist, Evolutionary biology, evolutionary biologist, and History of science, historian of science. He was one of the most influential and widely re ...
recounted Cuvier's monograph on Baartman's genitalia, "The labia minora
The labia minora (Latin for 'smaller lips', : labium minus), also known as the inner labia, inner lips, or nymphae, are two flaps of skin that are part of the primate vulva, extending outwards from the inner Vagina#Vaginal opening and hymen, vagi ...
, or inner lips, of the ordinary female genitalia are greatly enlarged in Khoi-San women, and may hang down three or four inches below the vulva
In mammals, the vulva (: vulvas or vulvae) comprises mostly external, visible structures of the female sex organ, genitalia leading into the interior of the female reproductive tract. For humans, it includes the mons pubis, labia majora, lab ...
when women stand, thus giving the impression of a separate and enveloping curtain of skin."Gould, Stephen Jay (1985)
"The Hottentot Venus."
'' The Flamingo's Smile''. New York: W. W. Norton
p. 298.
/ref> French naturalists
Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...
, among them Georges Cuvier
Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric, baron Cuvier (23 August 1769 – 13 May 1832), known as Georges Cuvier (; ), was a French natural history, naturalist and zoology, zoologist, sometimes referred to as the "founding father of paleontology". Cuv ...
, head keeper of the menagerie
A menagerie is a collection of captive animals, frequently exotic, kept for display; or the place where such a collection is kept, a precursor to the modern zoo or zoological garden.
The term was first used in 17th-century France, referring to ...
at the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle
The French National Museum of Natural History ( ; abbr. MNHN) is the national natural history museum of France and a of higher education part of Sorbonne University. The main museum, with four galleries, is located in Paris, France, within the Ja ...
and founder of the discipline of comparative anatomy, visited her. She was the subject of several scientific paintings at the Jardin du Roi
The Jardin des Plantes (, ), also known as the Jardin des Plantes de Paris () when distinguished from other ''jardins des plantes'' in other cities, is the main botanical garden in France. Jardin des Plantes is the official name in the present da ...
, where she was examined in March 1815.
She was brought out as an exhibit at wealthy people's parties and private salons.[ In Paris, Baartman's promoters did not need to concern themselves with slavery charges. Crais and Scully suggest: "By the time she got to Paris, her existence was really quite miserable and extraordinarily poor". At some points a collar was placed around her neck (although it is unclear whether that was just a prop for the performance).] Specifically, she was exhibited with a collar on some occasions. At the end of her life she was penniless, which was probably connected to the economic depression in France after Napoleon's defeat, resulting in a dearth of audiences that were able and willing to pay to see her. According to present-day accounts in the ''New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' and ''The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'', she was also working as a prostitute, but the biography by Crais and Scully only notes that as an uncertain possibility (since she was exhibited, besides other places, at the brothel in Cours des Fontaines).
Death and aftermath
Baartman died on 29 December 1815 around age 26, of an undetermined inflammatory ailment, possibly smallpox
Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...
, while other sources suggest she contracted syphilis
Syphilis () is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacterium ''Treponema pallidum'' subspecies ''pallidum''. The signs and symptoms depend on the stage it presents: primary, secondary, latent syphilis, latent or tertiary. The prim ...
,[ or ]pneumonia
Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...
. Cuvier conducted a dissection but no autopsy
An autopsy (also referred to as post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode, and manner of deat ...
to inquire into the reasons for Baartman's death.
The French anatomist Henri Marie Ducrotay de Blainville
Henri Marie Ducrotay de Blainville (; 12 September 1777 – 1 May 1850) was a French zoologist and anatomist.
Life
Blainville was born at Arques-la-Bataille, Arques, near Dieppe, Seine-Maritime, Dieppe. As a young man, he went to Paris to study a ...
published notes on the dissection in 1816, which were republished by Georges Cuvier
Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric, baron Cuvier (23 August 1769 – 13 May 1832), known as Georges Cuvier (; ), was a French natural history, naturalist and zoology, zoologist, sometimes referred to as the "founding father of paleontology". Cuv ...
in the ''Memoires du Museum d'Histoire Naturelle'' in 1817. Cuvier, who had met Baartman, notes in his monograph
A monograph is generally a long-form work on one (usually scholarly) subject, or one aspect of a subject, typically created by a single author or artist (or, sometimes, by two or more authors). Traditionally it is in written form and published a ...
that its subject was an intelligent woman with an excellent memory, particularly for faces. In addition to her native tongue, she spoke fluent Dutch, passable English, and a smattering of French. He describes her shoulders and back as "graceful", arms "slender", hands and feet as "charming" and "pretty". He adds she was adept at playing the Jew's harp
The Jew's harp, also known as jaw harp, juice harp, or mouth harp, is a lamellophone instrument, consisting of a flexible metal or bamboo tongue or reed attached to a frame. Despite the colloquial name, the Jew's harp most likely originated in ...
, could dance according to the traditions of her country, and had a lively personality. Despite this, Cuvier interpreted her remains as evidencing ape-like traits. He thought her small ears were similar to those of an orangutan and also compared her vivacity, when alive, to the quickness of a monkey. He was part of a movement of scientists who sought to identify and study differences between human races, with the aim of theorising a racial hierarchy.[
]
Display of remains
Saint-Hilaire applied on behalf of the Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle
The French National Museum of Natural History ( ; abbr. MNHN) is the national natural history museum of France and a of higher education part of Sorbonne University. The main museum, with four galleries, is located in Paris, France, within the Ja ...
to retain her remains (Cuvier had preserved her brain, genitalia and skeleton[), on the grounds that it was of a singular specimen of humanity and therefore of special scientific interest.] The application was approved and Baartman's skeleton and body cast were displayed in Muséum d'histoire naturelle d’Angers. Her skull was stolen in 1827 but returned a few months later. The restored skeleton and skull continued to arouse the interest of visitors until the remains were moved to the Musée de l'Homme
The Musée de l'Homme (; literally "Museum of Mankind" or "Museum of Humanity") is an anthropology museum in Paris, France. It was established in 1937 by Paul Rivet for the 1937 ''Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moder ...
, when it was founded in 1937, and continued up until the late 1970s. Her body cast and skeleton stood side by side and faced away from the viewer which emphasised her steatopygia (accumulation of fat on the buttocks) while reinforcing that aspect as the primary interest of her body. The Baartman exhibit proved popular until it elicited complaints for being a degrading representation of women. The skeleton was removed in 1974, and the body cast in 1976.
From the 1940s, there were sporadic calls for the return of her remains. A poem written in 1998 by South African poet Diana Ferrus, herself of Khoekhoe descent, titled "I've come to take you home", played a pivotal role in spurring the movement to bring Baartman's remains back to her birth soil.[ The case gained world-wide prominence only after American paleontologist ]Stephen Jay Gould
Stephen Jay Gould ( ; September 10, 1941 – May 20, 2002) was an American Paleontology, paleontologist, Evolutionary biology, evolutionary biologist, and History of science, historian of science. He was one of the most influential and widely re ...
wrote ''The Mismeasure of Man
''The Mismeasure of Man'' is a 1981 book by paleontologist Stephen Jay Gould. The book is both a history and critique of the statistical methods and cultural motivations underlying biological determinism, the belief that "the social and economic ...
'' in the 1980s. Mansell Upham, a researcher and jurist specializing in colonial South African history, also helped spur the movement to bring Baartman's remains back to South Africa. After the victory of the African National Congress
The African National Congress (ANC) is a political party in South Africa. It originated as a liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid and has governed the country since 1994, when the 1994 South African general election, fir ...
(ANC) in the 1994 South African general election
General elections were held in South Africa between 26 and 29 April 1994. The elections were the first in which citizens of all races were allowed to take part, and were therefore also the first held with universal suffrage. The election was c ...
, President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
*'' Præsident ...
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela ( , ; born Rolihlahla Mandela; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist and politician who served as the first president of South Africa f ...
formally requested that France return the remains. After much legal wrangling and debates in the French National Assembly
The National Assembly (, ) is the lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral French Parliament under the French Fifth Republic, Fifth Republic, the upper house being the Senate (France), Senate (). The National Assembly's legislators are known ...
, France acceded to the request on 6 March 2002. Her remains were repatriated to her homeland, the Gamtoos Valley, on 6 May 2002, and they were buried on 9 August 2002 on ''Vergaderingskop'', a hill in the town of Hankey over 200 years after her birth.
Symbolism
Sarah Baartman was not the only Khoekhoe to be taken from her homeland. Her story is sometimes used to illustrate social and political strains, and through this, some facts have been lost. Dr. Yvette Abrahams, professor of women and gender studies at the University of the Western Cape
The University of the Western Cape (UWC; ) is a Public university, public research university in Bellville, South Africa, Bellville, near Cape Town, South Africa. The university was established in 1959 by the Politics of South Africa, South ...
, writes, "we lack academic studies that view Sarah Baartman as anything other than a symbol. Her story becomes marginalized, as it is always used to illustrate some other topic." Baartman is used to represent African discrimination and suffering in the West although there were many other Khoekhoe people who were taken to Europe. Historian Neil Parsons writes of two Khoekhoe children 13 and six years old respectively, who were taken from South Africa and displayed at a holiday fair in Elberfeld
Elberfeld is a municipal subdivision of the Germany, German city of Wuppertal; it was an independent town until 1929.
History
The first official mentioning of the geographic area on the banks of today's Wupper River as "''elverfelde''" was ...
, Prussia
Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...
, in 1845. ''Bosjemans'', a travelling show including two Khoekhoe men, women, and a baby, toured Britain, Ireland, and France from 1846 to 1855. P. T. Barnum
Phineas Taylor Barnum (July 5, 1810 – April 7, 1891) was an American showman, businessman, and politician remembered for promoting celebrated hoaxes and founding with James Anthony Bailey the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. He was ...
's show "Little People" advertised a 16-year-old Khoekhoe girl named Flora as the "missing link" and acquired six more Khoekhoe children later.
Baartman's tale may be better known because she was the first Khoekhoe taken from her homeland, or because of the extensive exploitation and examination of her body by scientists such as Georges Cuvier
Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric, baron Cuvier (23 August 1769 – 13 May 1832), known as Georges Cuvier (; ), was a French natural history, naturalist and zoology, zoologist, sometimes referred to as the "founding father of paleontology". Cuv ...
, an anatomist, and the public as well as the mistreatment she received during and after her lifetime. She was brought to the West for her "exaggerated" female form, and the European public developed an obsession with her reproductive organs. Her body parts were on display at the Musée de l'Homme
The Musée de l'Homme (; literally "Museum of Mankind" or "Museum of Humanity") is an anthropology museum in Paris, France. It was established in 1937 by Paul Rivet for the 1937 ''Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moder ...
for 150 years, sparking awareness and sympathy in the public eye. Although Baartman was the first Khoekhoe to land in Europe, much of her story has been lost, and she is defined by her exploitation in the West.
Her body as a foundation for science
Julien-Joseph Virey used Sarah Baartman's published image to validate typologies. In his essay "''Dictionnaire des sciences medicales''" (Dictionary of medical sciences), he summarizes the true nature of the black female within the framework of accepted medical discourse. Virey focused on identifying her sexual organs as more developed and distinct in comparison to white female organs. All of his theories regarding sexual primitivism are influenced and supported by the anatomical studies and illustrations of Sarah Baartman which were created by Georges Cuvier
Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric, baron Cuvier (23 August 1769 – 13 May 1832), known as Georges Cuvier (; ), was a French natural history, naturalist and zoology, zoologist, sometimes referred to as the "founding father of paleontology". Cuv ...
.[
It has been suggested by anthropologists that this body type was once more widespread in humans, based on carvings of female forms dating to the ]Paleolithic
The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic ( years ago) ( ), also called the Old Stone Age (), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone tools, and which represents almost the entire period of human prehist ...
era which are collectively known as Venus figurines
A Venus figurine is any Upper Palaeolithic statue portraying a woman, usually carved in the round.Fagan, Brian M., Beck, Charlotte, "Venus Figurines", beliefs '' The Oxford Companion to Archaeology'', 1996, Oxford University Press, pp. 740– ...
, also referred to as Steatopygian Venuses.
Colonialism
Much speculation and study about colonialist influence relates to Baartman's name, social status, her illustrated and performed presentation as the "Hottentot Venus", although considered an extremely offensive term, and the negotiation for her body's return to her homeland.[ These components and events in Baartman's life have been used by activists and theorists to determine the ways in which 19th-century European colonists exercised control and authority over Khoekhoe people and simultaneously crafted racist and sexist ideologies about their culture.][ In addition to this, recent scholars have begun to analyze the surrounding events leading up to Baartman's return to her homeland and conclude that it is an expression of recent contemporary post colonial objectives.][
In Janet Shibamoto's book review of Deborah Cameron's book ''Feminism and Linguistic Theory'', Shibamoto discusses Cameron's study on the patriarchal context within language, which consequentially influences the way in which women continue to be contained by or subject to ideologies created by the patriarchy. Many scholars have presented information on how Baartman's life was heavily controlled and manipulated by colonialist and patriarchal language.
Baartman grew up on a farm. There is no historical documentation of her birth name.][ She was given the Dutch name "Saartjie" by Dutch colonists who occupied the land she lived on during her childhood. According to Clifton Crais and Pamela Scully:
]Her first name is the Cape Dutch form for "Sarah" which marked her as a colonialist's servant. "Saartje" the diminutive, was also a sign of affection. Encoded in her first name were the tensions of affection and exploitation. Her surname literally means "bearded man" in Dutch. It also means uncivilized, uncouth, barbarous, savage. Saartjie Baartman – the savage servant.
Dutch colonisers also bestowed the term "Hottentot", which is derived from "hot" and "tot", Dutch approximations of common sounds in the Khoekhoe language. The Dutch used this word when referencing Khoekhoe people because of the clicking sounds and staccato pronunciations that characterise the Khoekhoe language
Khoekhoe or Khoikhoi ( ; , ), also known by the ethnic terms Nama ( ; ''Namagowab''), Damara (''ǂNūkhoegowab''), or Nama/Damara and formerly as Hottentot, is the most widespread of the non- Bantu languages of Southern Africa that make heavy ...
; these components of the Khoekhoe language were considered strange and "bestial" to Dutch colonisers.[ The term was used until the late 20th century, at which point most people understood its effect as a derogatory term.
Travelogues that circulated in Europe would describe Africa as being "uncivilised" and lacking regard for religious virtue.][ Travelogues and imagery depicting Black women as "sexually primitive" and "savage" enforced the belief that it was in Africa's best interest to be colonised by European settlers. Cultural and religious conversion was considered to be an altruistic act with imperialist undertones; colonisers believed that they were reforming and correcting Khoekhoe culture in the name of ]Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...
and the empire.[ Scholarly arguments discuss how Baartman's body became a symbolic depiction of "all African women" as "fierce, savage, naked, and untamable" and became a crucial role in colonising parts of Africa and shaping narratives.
During the lengthy negotiation to have Baartman's body returned to her home country after her death, the assistant curator of the Musée de l'Homme, Philippe Mennecier, argued against her return, stating: "We never know what science will be able to tell us in the future. If she is buried, this chance will be lost ... for us she remains a very important treasure." According to Sadiah Qureshi, due to the continued treatment of Baartman's body as a cultural artifact, Philippe Mennecier's statement is contemporary evidence of the same type of ideology that surrounded Baartman's body while she was alive in the 18th century.][
]
Feminist reception
Traditional iconography of Sarah Baartman and feminist contemporary art
Many African female diasporic artists have criticised the traditional iconography of Baartman. According to the studies of contemporary feminists, traditional iconography and historical illustrations of Baartman are effective in revealing the ideological representation of black women in art throughout history. Such studies assess how the traditional iconography of the black female body was institutionally and scientifically defined in the 19th century.
Renee Cox, Renée Green, Joyce Scott, Lorna Simpson, Carrie Mae Weems
Carrie Mae Weems (born April 20, 1953) is an American artist working in text, fabric, audio, digital images and Video installation, installation video, and is best known for her photography. She achieved prominence through her early 1990s photog ...
and Deborah Willis are artists who seek to investigate contemporary social and cultural issues that still surround the African female body. Sander Gilman
Sander L. Gilman, (born February 21, 1944), is an American cultural and literary historian. He is known for his contributions to Jewish studies and the history of medicine. He is the author or editor of over one hundred books.
Gilman's focus is ...
, a cultural and literary historian states: "While many groups of African Blacks were known to Europeans in the 19th century, the Hottentot remained representative of the essence of the Black, especially the Black female. Both concepts fulfilled the iconographic function in the perception and representation of the world."[
His article "Black Bodies, White Bodies: Toward an Iconography of Female Sexuality in the Late Nineteenth Century Art, Medicine and Literature" traces art historical records of black women in European art, and also proves that the association of black women with concupiscence within art history has been illustrated consistently since the beginning of the Middle Ages.][
Lyle Ashton Harris and Renee Valerie Cox worked in collaboration to produce the photographic piece Hottentot Venus 2000. In this piece, Harris photographs Victoria Cox who presents herself as Baartman while wearing large, sculptural, gilded metal breasts and buttocks attached to her body.][Willis, Deborah. "Black Venus 2010: They called her 'Hottentot.'" Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2010. Project Muse
https://doc.lagout.org/Others/Temple.University.-.Black.Venus.pdf]
"Permitted" is an installation piece created by Renée Green inspired by Sarah Baartman. Green created a specific viewing arrangement to investigate the European perception of the black female body as "exotic", "bizarre" and "monstrous". Viewers were prompted to step onto the installed platform which was meant to evoke a stage, where Baartman may have been exhibited. Green recreates the basic setting of Baartman's exhibition. At the centre of the platform, which there is a large image of Baartman, and wooden rulers or slats with an engraved caption by Francis Galton encouraging viewers to measure Baartman's buttocks. In the installation there is also a peephole that allows viewers to see an image of Baartman standing on a crate. According to Willis, the implication of the peephole, demonstrates how ethnographic imagery of the black female form in the 19th century functioned as a form of pornography for Europeans present at Baartman's exhibit.[
In her film ''Reassemblage: From the firelight to the screen'', ]Trinh T. Minh-ha
Trinh T. Minh-ha (born 1952 in Hanoi; Vietnamese: Trịnh Thị Minh Hà) is a Vietnamese filmmaker, writer, literary theorist, composer, and professor. She has been making films since the 1980s and is best known for her films Reassemblage (film ...
comments on the ethnocentric bias that the coloniser's eye applies to the naked female form, arguing that this bias causes the nude female body to be seen as inherently sexually provocative, promiscuous and pornographic within the context of European or western culture.
Feminist artists are interested in re-representing Baartman's image, and work to highlight the stereotypes and ethnocentric bias surrounding the black female body based on art historical representations and iconography that occurred before, after and during Baartman's lifetime.[
]
Media representation and feminist criticism
In November 2014, ''Paper Magazine
''Paper'' (also known as ''Paper Mag'') is a New York City-based independent magazine focusing on fashion, popular culture, nightlife, music, art, and film. Initially produced monthly, the magazine eventually became a quarterly publication, and ...
'' released a cover of Kim Kardashian
Kimberly Noel Kardashian (born October 21, 1980) is an American media personality, socialite, and businesswoman. She first gained media attention as a friend and stylist of Paris Hilton, but received wider notice after the celebrity sex tape ...
in which she was illustrated as balancing a champagne glass on her extended rear. The cover received much criticism for endorsing "the exploitation and fetishism of the black female body". The similarities with the way in which Baartman was represented as the "Hottentot Venus" during the 19th century have prompted much criticism and commentary.[Thomas, Geneva]
"Kim Kardashian: Posing Black Femaleness?"
''Clutch''.
According to writer Geneva S. Thomas, anyone that is aware of black women's history under colonialist influence would consequentially be aware that Kardashian's photo easily elicits memory regarding the visual representation of Baartman.[
The photographer and director of the photo, ]Jean-Paul Goude
Jean-Paul Goude (born in Montreuil, Seine-Saint-Denis 8 December 1938) is a French graphic designer, illustrator, photographer, advertising film director and event designer. He worked as art director at ''Esquire (magazine), Esquire'' magazine i ...
, based the photo on his previous work "Carolina Beaumont", taken of a nude model in 1976 and published in his book ''Jungle Fever''.[Miller, Kelsey]
"The Troubling Racial History of Kim K's Champagne Shot"
''Refinery 29'', 13 November 2014.
A ''People Magazine'' article in 1979 about his relationship with model Grace Jones
Grace Beverly Jones (born 19 May 1948) is a Jamaican singer, songwriter, model and actress. She began her Model (person), modelling career in New York State, then in Paris, working for fashion houses such as Yves Saint Laurent (brand), Yves St ...
describes Goude in the following statement:
Jean-Paul has been fascinated with women like Grace since his youth. The son of a French engineer and an American-born dancer, he grew up in a Paris suburb. From the moment he saw West Side Story and the Alvin Ailey dance troupe, he found himself captivated by "ethnic minorities" — black girls, PRs. "I had jungle fever." He now says, "Blacks are the premise of my work."
Days before the shoot, Goude often worked with his models to find the best "hyperbolised" position to take his photos. His model and partner, Grace Jones, would also pose for days prior to finally acquiring the perfect form. "That's the basis of my entire work," Goude states, "creating a credible illusion."[ Similarly, Baartman and other black female slaves were illustrated and depicted in a specific form to identify features, which were seen as proof of ideologies regarding black female primitivism.]
The professional background of Goude and the specific posture and presentation of Kardashian's image in the recreation on the cover of ''Paper Magazine'' has caused feminist critics to comment how the objectification of the Baartman's body and the ethnographic representation of her image in 19th-century society presents a comparable and complementary parallel to how Kardashian is currently represented in the media.[Telusma, Blue]
"Kim Kardashian doesn't realize she's the butt of an old racial joke"
''The Grio'', 12 November 2014.
In response to the November 2014 photograph of Kim Kardashian, Cleuci de Oliveira published an article on titled "Saartjie Baartman: The Original Bootie Queen", which claims that Baartman was "always an agent in her own path." Oliveira goes on to assert that Baartman performed on her own terms and was unwilling to view herself as a tool for scientific advancement, an object of entertainment, or a pawn of the state.
Neelika Jayawardane, a literature professor and editor of the website Africa is a Country, published a response to Oliveira's article. Jayawardane criticises de Oliveira's work, stating that she "did untold damage to what the historical record shows about Baartman". Jayawardane's article is cautious about introducing what she considers false agency to historical figures such as Baartman.
An article titled "Body Talk: Feminism, Sexuality and the Body in the Work of Six African Women Artists", curated by Cameroonian-born Koyo Kouoh, mentions Baartman's legacy and its impact on young female African artists. The work linked to Baartman is meant to reference the ethnographic exhibits of the 19th century that enslaved Baartman and displayed her naked body. Artist Valérie Oka's (''Untitled'', 2015) rendered a live performance of a black naked woman in a cage with the door swung open, walking around a sculpture of male genitalia, repeatedly. Her work was so impactful it led one audience member to proclaim, "Do we allow this to happen because we are in the white cube, or are we revolted by it?". Oka's work has been described as 'black feminist art' where the female body is a site for activism and expression. The article also mentions other African female icons and how artists are expressing themselves through performance and discussion by posing the question "How Does the White Man Represent the Black Woman?".
Social scientists James McKay and Helen Johnson cited Baartman to fit newspaper coverage of the African-American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...
tennis players Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is often called Earth's "twin" or "sister" planet for having almost the same size and mass, and the closest orbit to Earth's. While both are rocky planets, Venus has an atmosphere much thicker ...
and Serena Williams
Serena Jameka Williams (born September 26, 1981) is an American former professional tennis player. She was ranked as the List of WTA number 1 ranked singles tennis players, world No. 1 in women's singles by the Women's Tennis Association (WT ...
within racist trans-historical narratives of "pornographic eroticism" and "sexual grotesquerie." According to McKay and Johnson, white male reporters covering the Williams sisters have fixated upon their on-court fashions and their muscular bodies, while downplaying their on-court achievements, describing their bodies as mannish, animalistic, or hyper-sexual, rather than well-developed. Their victories have been attributed to their supposed natural physical superiorities, while their defeats have been blamed on their supposed lack of discipline. This analysis claims that commentary on the size of Serena's breasts and bottom, in particular, mirrors the spectacle made of Baartman's body.
Heather Radke's 2022 '' Butts: A Backstory'' heavily relied on Baartman's story to examine the cultural history of women's buttocks
The buttocks (: buttock) are two rounded portions of the exterior anatomy of most mammals, located on the posterior of the pelvic region. In humans, the buttocks are located between the lower back and the perineum. They are composed of a lay ...
.
Reclaiming the story
In recent years, some black women have found her story to be a source of empowerment
Empowerment is the degree of autonomy and self-determination in people and in communities. This enables them to represent their interests in a responsible and self-determined way, acting on their own authority. It is the process of becoming strong ...
, one that protests the ideals of white mainstream beauty, as curvaceous bodies are increasingly lauded in popular culture
Popular culture (also called pop culture or mass culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of cultural practice, practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as popular art f. pop art
F is the sixth letter of the Latin alphabet.
F may also refer to:
Science and technology Mathematics
* F or f, the number 15 (number), 15 in hexadecimal and higher positional systems
* ''p'F'q'', the hypergeometric function
* F-distributi ...
or mass art, sometimes contraste ...
and mass media
Mass media include the diverse arrays of media that reach a large audience via mass communication.
Broadcast media transmit information electronically via media such as films, radio, recorded music, or television. Digital media comprises b ...
.
Paramount Chief Glen Taaibosch, chair of the Gauteng Khoi and San Council, says that today "we call her our Hottentot Queen" and honour her.[
]
Legacy and honours
Baartman became an icon in South Africa as representative of many aspects of the nation's history.
* The Saartjie Baartman Centre for Women and Children, a refuge for survivors of domestic violence
Domestic violence is violence that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage
Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes r ...
, opened in Cape Town in 1999.
* South Africa's first offshore environmental protection vessel, the ''Sarah Baartman
Sarah Baartman (; 1789 – 29 December 1815), also spelled Sara, sometimes in the diminutive form Saartje (), or Saartjie, and Bartman, Bartmann, was a Khoekhoe woman who was exhibited as a freak show attraction in 19th-century Europe under ...
'', is also named after her.
* In 2015 South Africa's former Cacadu District Municipality was renamed Sarah Baartman District Municipality
The Sarah Baartman District Municipality (; ), formerly the Cacadu District Municipality, is situated in the western part of the Eastern Cape province of South Africa, covering an area of 58,242 square kilometres. The area of the district municip ...
in her honor.
* On 8 December 2018, the University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town (UCT) (, ) is a public university, public research university in Cape Town, South Africa.
Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university status in 1918, making it the oldest univer ...
made the decision to rename Memorial Hall, at the centre of the campus, to Sarah Baartman Hall. This follows the earlier removal of " Jameson" from the hall's name.
Cultural references
* On 10 January 1811, at the New Theatre, London, a pantomime called "The Hottentot Venus" featured at the end of the evening's entertainment.
* In William Makepeace Thackeray
William Makepeace Thackeray ( ; 18 July 1811 – 24 December 1863) was an English novelist and illustrator. He is known for his Satire, satirical works, particularly his 1847–1848 novel ''Vanity Fair (novel), Vanity Fair'', a panoramic portra ...
's 1847 novel '' Vanity Fair'', George Osborne angrily refuses his father's instruction to marry a West Indian mulatto heiress by referring to Miss Swartz as "that Hottentot Venus".
* In "Crinoliniana" (1863), a poem satirising Victorian fashion
Victorian fashion consists of the various fashions and trends in British culture that emerged and developed in the United Kingdom and the British Empire throughout the Victorian era, roughly from the 1830s through the 1890s. The period saw m ...
, the author compares a woman in a crinoline
A crinoline is a stiff or structured petticoat designed to hold out a skirt, popular at various times since the mid-19th century. Originally, crinoline described a stiff fabric made of horsehair ("crin") and cotton or linen which was used to ...
to a "Venus" from "the Cape".
* In James Joyce
James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (born James Augusta Joyce; 2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influentia ...
's 1916 novel ''A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
''A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man'' is the second book and first novel of Irish writer James Joyce, published in 1916. A ''Künstlerroman'' written in a modernist style, it traces the religious and intellectual awakening of young Ste ...
'', the protagonist, Stephen Dedalus, refers to "the great flanks of Venus" after a reference to the Hottentot people, when discussing the discrepancies between cultural perceptions of female beauty.
* Dame Edith Sitwell referred to her allusively in "Hornpipe", a poem in the satirical collection ''Façade''.
* In Jean Rhys
Jean Rhys, ( ; born Ella Gwendoline Rees Williams; 24 August 1890 – 14 May 1979) was a novelist who was born and grew up in the Caribbean island of Dominica. From the age of 16, she resided mainly in England, where she was sent for her educa ...
' 1934 novel '' Voyage in the Dark'', the Creole protagonist Anna Morgan is referred to as "the Hottentot".
* Elizabeth Alexander explores her story in
1987 poem
and 1990 book, both titled ''The Venus Hottentot''.
* Hebrew poet Mordechai Geldman
Mordechai Geldman (; 16 April 1946 – 8 October 2021) was an Israeli poet, non-fiction writer, artist, art critic and curator, and psychologist. His poems were translated into many languages, including the collection ''Years I Walked at Your Si ...
wrote a poem titled "THE HOTTENTOT VENUS" exploring the subject in his 1993 book Eye.
* Suzan-Lori Parks used the story of Baartman as the basis for her 1996 play ''Venus.''
* Zola Maseko directed a documentary on Baartman, '' The Life and Times of Sarah Baartman'', in 1998.
* Lyle Ashton Harris collaborated with the model Renee Valerie Cox to produce a photographic image, ''Hottentot Venus 2000''.
* Barbara Chase-Riboud wrote the novel ''Hottentot Venus: A Novel'' (2003), which humanizes Sarah Baartman
* Cathy Park Hong wrote a poem titled "Hottentot Venus" in her 2007 book ''Translating Mo'um.''
* Lydia R. Diamond's 2008 play ''Voyeurs de Venus'' investigates Baartman's life from a postcolonial perspective.
* A movie titled '' Black Venus'', directed by Abdellatif Kechiche
Abdellatif Kechiche (; , born 7 December 1960), also known as Abdel Kechiche, is a Tunisian-France, French film director, screenwriter and actor. He made his directorial debut in 2000 with ''La Faute à Voltaire'', which he also wrote. Known for ...
and starring Yahima Torres as Sarah, was released in 2010.
* Hendrik Hofmeyr composed a 20-minute opera titled ''Saartjie'', which was to be premiered by Cape Town Opera in November 2010.
* Joanna Bator refers to a fictional descendant in her novel:
* Douglas Kearney published a poem titled "Drop It Like It's Hottentot Venus" in April 2012.
* Diane Awerbuck has Baartman feature as a central thread in her novel ''Home Remedies''. The work is critical of the "grandstanding" that so often surrounds Baartman: as Awerbuck has explained, "Saartjie Baartman is not a symbol. She is a dead woman who once suffered in a series of cruel systems. The best way we can remember her is by not letting it happen again."
* Brett Bailey's ''Exhibit B'' (a human zoo) depicts Baartman.
* Jamila Woods' song "Blk Girl Soldier" on her 2016 album '' Heavn'' references Baartman's story: "They put her body in a jar and forget her".
* Nitty Scott makes reference to Baartman in her song "For Sarah Baartman" on her 2017 album ''CREATURE!''.
*The Carters
The Carters are an American musical superduo consisting of singer Beyoncé and rapper Jay-Z, who have been married since 2008. Outside of the Carters, the couple has also frequently collaborated in recordings and songwriting. Their first album ...
, Jay-Z
Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American Rapping, rapper, businessman, and record executive. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he was named Billboard and Vibe's 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time, the ...
and Beyoncé
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and businesswoman. With a career spanning over three decades, she has established herself as one of the most Cultural impact of Beyoncé, ...
, make mention of her in their song "Black Effect": "Stunt with your curls, your lips, Sarah Baartman hips", off their 2018 album '' Everything is Love''.
*The University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town (UCT) (, ) is a public university, public research university in Cape Town, South Africa.
Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university status in 1918, making it the oldest univer ...
made the historic decision to rename Memorial Hall to Sarah Baartman Hall (8 December 2018).
* Zodwa Nyoni debuted at Summerhall in 2019, a new play called ''A Khoisan Woman'' - a play about the Hottentot Venus.
* Royce 5'9 references Sarah Baartman in his song "Upside Down" in 2020.
* Tessa McWatt discusses Baartman and the Hottentot in her 2019/20 book, "Shame on Me: An Anatomy of Race and Belonging".
*Meghan Swaby explores the ideas of colonialism and culture as they relate to BIPOC and Saartjie Baartman in her book/play, "Venus' Daughter".
See also
* Awoulaba
* Body shape
Human body shape is a complex phenomenon with sophisticated detail and function. The general shape or figure of a person is defined mainly by the molding of skeletal structures, as well as the distribution of muscles and adipose tissue, fat. Ske ...
* Female body shape
Female body shape or female figure is the cumulative product of a woman's bone structure along with the distribution of muscle and fat on the body.
Female figures are typically narrower at the waist than at the bust and hips. The bust, waist ...
* Feminine beauty ideal
The feminine beauty ideal is a specific set of beauty standards regarding traits that are ingrained in Woman, women throughout their lives and from a young age to increase their ''perceived'' physical attractiveness. It is experienced by many women ...
* Feminism and racism
* Human variability
Human variability, or human variation, is the range of possible values for any characteristic, human biology, physical or psychology, mental, of human, human beings.
Frequently debated areas of variability include cognitive ability, personality, ...
* Human zoo
* Ota Benga
* Racial fetishism
* Racism in Europe
Racism has been a recurring part of the history of Europe.
Belarus
Belgium
Racism in Belgium existed since its independence declaration during the colonial era. A 2011 study shows that racism against sub-saharan people is strongly influenced ...
* Scientific racism
Scientific racism, sometimes termed biological racism, is the pseudoscience, pseudoscientific belief that the Human, human species is divided into biologically distinct taxa called "race (human categorization), races", and that empirical evi ...
* Tono Maria
Tono Maria was a South American woman who was displayed at freak shows in London during the early 19th century. She was an Aimoré woman who was born in the Minas Gerais region of Colonial Brazil, Brazil and eventually moved to London at some poin ...
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
*Willis, Deborah (Ed.) ''Black Venus 2010: They Called Her 'Hottentot'.'' Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press. . Available in: https://doc.lagout.org/Others/Temple.University.-.Black.Venus.pdf
Further reading
* Fausto-Sterling, Anne (1995). "Gender, Race, and Nation: The Comparative Anatomy of 'Hottentot' Women in Europe, 1815–1817". In Terry, Jennifer and Jacqueline Urla (Ed.) ''Deviant Bodies: Critical Perspectives on Difference in Science and Popular Culture'', 19–48. Bloomington, Indiana University Press. .
*
*
*
* Ritter, Sabine (2010). ''Facetten der Sarah Baartman: Repräsentationen und Rekonstruktionen der ‚Hottentottenvenus. Münster: Lit Verlag. .
Films
* Abdellatif Kechiche: ''Vénus noire (Black Venus)''. Paris: MK2, 2009
* Zola Maseko: ''The life and times of Sara Baartman''. Icarus, 1998
External links
*
*
South Africa government site about her
including Diana Ferrus's pivotal poem
* ttp://education.guardian.co.uk/higher/worldwide/story/0,,653760,00.html ''Guardian'' article on the return of her remains
A documentary film called ''The Life and Times of Sara Baartman'' by Zola Maseko
The Saartjie Baartman Story
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baartman, Sarah
1780s births
1815 deaths
Year of birth uncertain
Repatriated human remains
Khoekhoe
People from the Eastern Cape
Sideshow performers
Human zoo performers
Cape Colony women
Ethnological show business
South African emigrants to France
South African expatriates in the United Kingdom
Scientific racism