Sara Baartman (1789 - 1815) 1, was a South African woman popular in Europe during the 19th century, where she was exhibited in circus shows for her bodily characteristics. She was originally from the Khoikhoi tribe, known then as Hottentots, a term considered derogatory.
Baartman is thought to have steatopygia, meaning that his buttocks stored large amounts of fat. 2 He grew up on a continent convulsed by colonization and wars between blacks and whites.
By Wermer, Maréchal, Huet, designers; C. de Lasteyrie, lithograph; Etienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, Frédéric Cuvier, authors of the text. Uploaded, stitched and restored by Jebulon (Bibliothèque nationale de France), via Wikimedia Commons
When she was still a teenager, she was enslaved by a mixed race family who brought her to Cape Town. From there she was transferred to London, where she aroused the curiosity of the locals in a show where they showed her naked.
But English society did not agree with the treatment of the so-called "Hottentot Venus". Baartman's case was taken to court but was unsuccessful. Then the young woman was transferred to Paris. 3
In France it had, for a time, the attention of both the public and the scientists. After he died, his remains were part of an exhibition at the Museum of Man in Paris.
Biography
Early years
Sara Baartman, was born in 1789 in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. Her first name was "Saartjie" in Dutch, which indicated that she was a servant of a settler. Similarly, hers surname "Baartmann" meant "bearded man", and also wild or uncivilized. 4
Baartman was a servant from the moment of her birth. She grew up in the lands of David Fourie, a settler descended from French Protestants, with whom the Khoikhoi lived peacefully. 5
During the celebration of her betrothal with a young man from the tribe, she received a tortoise shell earring that would always accompany her. But this very day her father was murdered, as was her fiancé, and she was taken away to be sold as a slave.
Although Baartman could not be formally enslaved, Pieter Cezars happened to have her custody and took her with him to Cape Town. There he handed him over to his brother Hendrick to serve as a maid. 6
Travel and exploitation
Hendrick Cezars and Alexander Dunlop, an English physician, took young Sara Baartman to London in 1810, when she was just 21 years old.
At that moment, "the Hottentot Venus" began to appear in the Egyptian Hall of Picadilly Circus. Baartman had to show herself naked on stage and obey the orders of a coach who told her when to sit, get up or walk.
This show caused a stir on the British island, where the slave trade was prohibited. Some considered that the way in which Baartman was treated was incorrect and her claims triggered a lawsuit.
The exhibition owner then produced a contract in which Baartman allegedly accepted those conditions for an annual payment. When she was called to testify, she assured in Dutch that she was there of her own free will.
However, Baartman's statement has been challenged, as Dunlop was allowed to remain in the courtroom while she testified. This is why the show lasted for a while longer. 7
Later, the Baartman exhibition was taken on a tour of Britain. This journey concluded with her baptism in Manchester Cathedral on December 1, 1811, where it is believed that she was also married on the same day. 8
Paris
When the show stopped being profitable in England, they decided to move Baartman to France. It was brought by a man named Henry Taylor who sold it to an animal trainer named Réaux.
There he captured the attention of society, although in a much shorter way. But those who were really interested in "the Hottentot Venus" were the Parisian scientists, who wanted to study her bodily characteristics.
One of them was Georges Cuvier, a French naturalist, father of comparative anatomy and paleontology. Cuvier made drawings of Baartman and studied her physiognomy while she was alive. With these investigations she supported racial theories. 9
Death
Approximately 15 months after her arrival in France, where she remained a slave, her show as "Hottentot Venus" ceased to be profitable. So she was forced into prostitution.
Baartman died in Paris on December 29, 1815, at the age of 26. His death was the result of an inflammatory disease, possibly chickenpox or syphilis. 10
After his death the scientist Georges Cuvier performed an autopsy on him. He removed some organs from Baartman's body for study. In 1816 the naturalist Henri Marie Ducrotay de Blainville published texts about his dissection.
His skeleton, brain and sexual organs were exhibited in the Museum of Man in Paris until 1974. 11
Influence
Repatriation
In 1994 the President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela, made a formal request for the repatriation of Sara Baartman.
The French National Assembly granted the petition on March 6, 2002. On May 6 of the same year, her remains were sent to South Africa, where she was buried on August 9, 2002. 12
Legacy
Sara Baartman is considered a symbol of both South African culture and feminism. The mistreatment she received during her life and the exploitation of her body that continued until after her death have given her story great importance.
Although other individuals at this same time suffered from similar treatment to which Baartman was subjected, her story became more popular. It is considered by some that she was the prime example of scientific racism developed in Europe during the 19th century. 13
Some women object to the use of the same illustrations that were made while she was alive in current literature and research on Baartman.
They consider that through the dissemination of this image of Baartman the racist conception that describes the black woman's body as a strange phenomenon is perpetuated.
Baartman's story has been portrayed on different occasions in the cinema. In 1998 a documentary called The Life and Times of Sara Baartman (The Life and Times of Sara Baartman), directed by Zola Maseko, was released. 14
Then in 2010 the filmmaker Abdellatif Kechiche released a film based on the character of Sara Baartman called Vénus Noire. fifteen
References
- Holmes, Rachel (2006). The Hottentot Venus. Bloomsbury, Random House. ISBN 0-7475-7776-5.
- En.wikipedia.org. (2018). Steatopygia. Available at: en.wikipedia.org.
- Gould, S. (1987). The flamingo's smile. New York: Norton, pp. 293-294.
- Crais, C. and Scully, P. (2009). Sara Baartman and the Hottentot Venus. Princeton: Princeton University. ISBN 978-0-691-13580-9, p. 9.
- Crais, C. and Scully, P. (2009). Sara Baartman and the Hottentot Venus. Princeton: Princeton University. ISBN 978-0-691-13580-9, p. 19.
- Holmes, Rachel (2006). The Hottentot Venus. Bloomsbury, Random House. ISBN 0-7475-7776-5.
- Bartsch, I. and Lederman, M. (2003). The gender and science reader. London: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-21357-6, p. 351.
- En.wikipedia.org. (2018). Sarah Baartman. Available at: en.wikipedia.org.
- Bartsch, I. and Lederman, M. (2003). The gender and science reader. London: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-21357-6, p. 357.
- En.wikipedia.org. (2018). Sarah Baartman. Available at: en.wikipedia.org.
- Qureshi, Sadiah (2004). "Displaying Sara Baartman, the 'Venus Hottentot'". History of Science. 42 (136): 233–257.
- News.bbc.co.uk. (2002). BBC News - EUROPE - 'Hottentot Venus' goes home. Available at: news.bbc.co.uk.
- En.wikipedia.org. (2018). Sarah Baartman. Available at: en.wikipedia.org.
- IMDb. (2018). The Life and Times of Sara Baartman (1998). Available at: imdb.com.
- IMDb. (2018). Black Venus (2010). Available at: imdb.com.