A caricature of Baartman drawn in the early 19th century

Saartjie Baartman (1789-1815) was the most famous of at least two Khoikhoi women who were exhibited as sideshow attractions in 19th century Europe under the name Hottentot Venus. Saartje Baartman This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Saartje Baartman This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1789 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... The Battle of New Orleans 1815 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... An 18th century drawing of Khoikhoi worshipping the moon The Khoikhoi (people people or real people) or Khoi are a division of the Khoisan ethnic group of south-western Africa, closely related to the Bushmen (San in the Khoi language). ... For the informal automotive skills event, see sydeshow. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... World map showing Europe (geographically) When considered a continent, Europe is the worlds second-smallest continent in terms of area, with an area of 10,600,000 km² (4,140,625 square miles), making it larger than Australia only. ...

Saartjie Baartman was born to a Khoisan family in the vicinity of the Gamtoos River in what is now the Eastern Cape of South Africa. Saartjie, pronounced "Sahr-chee", is the Dutch (and Afrikaans) form of her name; it translates as "Little Sarah". Her original name is unknown. Khoisan is the name for several ethnic groups of southern Africa, where they seem to have appeared many tens of thousands of years ago, and that share some specific physical and linguistic characteristics. ... Gamtoos River is situated in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa and is approximately 645 km long with a catchment area of 34,635 km². The name Gamtoos is probably derived from a Khoikhoi clan whose name was given by early Dutch settlers as Gamtousch. Although the rainfall in... The Eastern Cape is a province of South Africa. ... Jump to: navigation, search Afrikaans is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in South Africa and Namibia. ...

Baartman was a servant of Dutch farmers near Cape Town when Hendrick Cezar, the brother of Baartman's employer, suggested that she travel to England for exhibition, promising her that she would become wealthy. Lord Caledon, governor of the Cape, gave permission for the trip, but later regretted it after he gained a complete understanding of its purpose. She left for London in 1810. City motto: Spes Bona (Latin: Good Hope) Province Western Cape Mayor Nomaindia Mfeketo Area  - % water 1,644 km² 0. ... Jump to: navigation, search Royal motto (French): Dieu et mon droit (Translated: God and my right) Englands location within the UK Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population - Total (mid-2004) - Density Ranked 1st UK... London is the capital city of the United Kingdom and of England. ... 1810 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ...

She travelled around England showing what Europeans considered her "unusual" bodily features, thought to be typical of Hottentots. She had very large buttocks, steatopygia, which was considered both strange and titillating. Her exhibitors permitted visitors to touch her buttocks for extra payment. In addition, she had a sinus pudoris, otherwise known as the "tablier," "curtain of shame," or apron, a reference to the elongated labia of some Khoisan. It should be noted, however, that some find the term "sinus pudoris" to be racist because it refers only to labias of Khoi-San woman when, in reality, all labias vary in size and shape to some degree. To quote Stephen Jay Gould, "The labia minora, 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 vagina when women stand, thus giving the impression of a separate and enveloping curtain of skin." (Gould, 1985) Saartje never allowed this latter trait to be exhibited while she was alive. Jump to: navigation, search Royal motto (French): Dieu et mon droit (Translated: God and my right) Englands location within the UK Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population - Total (mid-2004) - Density Ranked 1st UK... World map showing Europe (geographically) When considered a continent, Europe is the worlds second-smallest continent in terms of area, with an area of 10,600,000 km² (4,140,625 square miles), making it larger than Australia only. ... The Khoikhoi (men of men) or Khoi are a division of the Khoisan ethnic group of south-western Africa, closely related to the Bushmen (San). ... Steatopygia is a high degree of fat accumulation in and around the buttocks. ... Parts of a vulva The external genital organs of the female are collectively known as the vulva (also sometimes called the pudenda). ... Jump to: navigation, search Stephen Jay Gould Stephen Jay Gould (September 10, 1941 – May 20, 2002) was a New York-born American paleontologist, evolutionary biologist, and historian of science. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1985 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Her exhibition in London created a scandal and a benevolent society called the African Association petitioned for her release. Baartman was questioned in Dutch before a court and stated that she was not under restraint and understood perfectly that she was guaranteed half of the profits. She later traveled to Paris where an animal trainer exhibited her for fifteen months. French anatomist Georges Cuvier and French naturalists visited her and she was the subject of several scientific paintings at the Jardin du Roi. Georges Cuvier Baron Georges Léopold Chrétien Frédéric Dagobert Cuvier (August 23, 1769 - May 13, 1832) was a French naturalist and zoologist. ...

Baartman died December 29, 1815 of an inflammatory ailment. An autopsy was conducted and the findings published by French anatomist Henri Marie Ducrotay de Blainville in 1816 and by Cuvier in the Memoires du Museum d'Histoire Naturelle in 1817. Cuvier notes in his monograph that Baartman was an intelligent woman who had an excellent memory and spoke Dutch fluently. Her skeleton, preserved genitals and brain were placed on display in Paris Musee de l'Homme until 1985. Jump to: navigation, search December 29 is the 363rd day of the year (364th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 2 days remaining. ... The Battle of New Orleans 1815 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Henri Marie Ducrotay de Blainville (September 12, 1777 - May 1, 1850) was a French zoologist and anatomist. ... In biology, the skeleton or skeletal system is the biological system providing support in living organisms. ... A sex organ, or primary sexual characteristic, narrowly defined, is any of those parts of the body (which are not always bodily organs according to the strict definition) which are involved in sexual reproduction and constitute the reproductive system in an complex organism; namely: Male: penis (notably the glans penis... Jump to: navigation, search In the anatomy of animals, the brain, or encephalon, is the higher, supervisory center of the nervous system. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1985 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

There were sporadic calls for the return of her remains beginning in the 1940s but the case became prominent only after US biologist Stephen Jay Gould published an account The Hottentot Venus in the 1980s. When Nelson Mandela became president of South Africa in 1994, he formally requested that France return the remains. After much legal wrangling and debates in the French National Assembly, France acceded to the request on 6 March 2002. Jump to: navigation, search // Events and trends The 1940s were seen as a transition period between the radical 1930s and the conservative 1950s, which also leads the period to be divided in two halves: The first half of the decade was dominated by World War II, the widest and most... Jump to: navigation, search Stephen Jay Gould Stephen Jay Gould (September 10, 1941 – May 20, 2002) was a New York-born American paleontologist, evolutionary biologist, and historian of science. ... Jump to: navigation, search // Events and trends The 1980s marked an abrupt shift towards more conservative lifestyles after the momentous cultural revolutions which took place in the 1960s and 1970s and the definition of the AIDS virus in 1981. ... Jump to: navigation, search Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela the poor man, and the black race!, (born July 18, 1918), was the first democratically elected President of South Africa, having previously been a prominent anti-apartheid activist there. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1994 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ... The Palais Bourbon, front The French National Assembly (French: Assemblée nationale) is one of the two houses of the bicameral Parliament of France under the Fifth Republic. ... Jump to: navigation, search March 6 is the 65th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (66th in Leap years). ... Jump to: navigation, search 2002 (MMII) is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Whilst studying in Europe Diana Ferrus, a South African poet of Khoisan descent, wrote "A Poem for Sarah Baartman" which includes the desire "to wrench you away-/ away from the poking eyes..."

Baartman's remains were returned to her land of birth, the Gamtoos Valley on 3 May 2002. Jump to: navigation, search May 3 is the 123rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (124th in leap years). ... Jump to: navigation, search 2002 (MMII) is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

References

Gilman, Sander L. (1985). "Black Bodies, White Bodies: Toward an Iconography of Female Sexuality in Late Nineteenth-Century Art, Medicine, and Literature". In Gates, Henry (Ed.) Race, Writing and Difference 223-261. Chicago, University of Chicago Press.

Gould, Stephen Jay (1985). "The Hottentot Venus". In The Flamingo's Smile, 291-305. New York, W.W. Norton and Company.

Trivia

The science-fiction author Paul Di Filippo used these facts as the basis for the second story of his Steampunk Trilogy. Jump to: navigation, search A collection of well-known science-fiction novels and magazines Science fiction is a form of speculative fiction principally dealing with the impact of imagined science and technology upon society and persons as individuals. ... Science Fiction writer born 1954 in Providence, Rhode Island. ...

External links

• A French print
• Guardian article on the return of her remains