Julia Pastrana was born in the mountains of Western Mexico in 1834. thanks as always, nell, Hi Peg, yes my mum used to say about the bearded ladies etc, I never saw them, and of course we never thought of how cruel it was at that time, thanks so much for reading, nell, Hi Levertis, yes it was such a sad story, if only she had been born today, it would have been so different, I hope. Her wily husband immediately sold the bodies of his wife and child to anatomy professor Sokolov of the Moscow University for a price. Good article! And so, death didnt free Pastrana from public gawking. One of these men was Francis Buckland an eccentric naturalist who first saw the living Pastrana in 1857 and the dead Pastrana in 1862. I am sharing.. The Arena Media Brands, LLC and respective content providers to this website may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. So glad she attained a fitting resting place. RELATED: Queen Victorias freaky obsession, RELATED: Crucial find in Elephant Man mystery, RELATED: Killer sweating sickness that terrified a King. Jake Berthots paintings are haunted by an awareness of mortality and, beyond that, a feeling that no light awaits in the darkness. But she was anything but a freak, she could cook and sew, sing romance songs, and even better, hold an intelligent conversation which impressed the gentry, in a time when women were not treated as intelligent human beings. Someone must have cared enough about her to educate her, and teach her to sing and dance, don't you think?? I am glad she did get the burial she deserved, but what a horrible time she had poor girl, thanks so much for reading, nell. Nell Rose (author) from England on May 04, 2014: Hi heidi, thanks so much, some things never change, but thankfully the way we quickly deal with it is much better thankfully, glad you liked it, nell, Hi Dabble, thanks for reading, yes some people just have it bad from birth don't they? He dissected them and then mummified them so that they could be put on display. log in. But The Liverpool Mercury marveled, she is good-natured, sociable, and accommodating, pointing out that Julia was bilingual and could dance, sing, sew, cook, wash and iron.. No one knows what prompted her to commit such a heinous act. Pastranas manager, Theodore Lent, described her as half-woman, half-animal in a bid to increase ticket sales. Freak shows, although now politically incorrect and unpopular, gave unique people a stage and they were made stars. related to the life of Julia Pastrana (1834-1860), who once performed in the U.S. and all over Europe. Aw thanks epi, you are kinda amazing yourself! After the bodies were preserved by Sukolov, Lent re-purchased them from him and began exhibiting them throughout Europe. Dr Woolfs book also explores the reactions of two men who went to Pastranas exhibition. Boo to her husband for being greedy!! His diagnosis followed a racist tradition of linking darker-skinned people with animals. I suppose people with severe birth defects have been protected from public exploitation. Ohand Lent was asshole. [1] She was born with a genetic condition, hypertrichosis terminalis (or generalized hypertrichosis lanuginosa[2]); her face and body were covered with straight black hair. Pastrana was not alone in her fate. In their version, Pastrana was born with the condition hypertrichosis, which covered her face and body in thick hair. such a darn shame, thanks so much for reading, nell, Hi Suzette, yes DNA has a lot to answer for! Deb Hirt from Stillwater, OK on April 22, 2017: I read this with deep sadness. I'm glad she was finally laid to rest it was so long overdue. It was a ten-year effort to repatriate Pastrana, with Barbata writing letters tothe National Research Ethics Committee for the Social Sciences and Humanities, the National Committee for Ethical Evaluation of Research on Human Remains of Norway, the Governor of Sinaloa in Mexico, the Foreign Affairs Department of Mexico, the University of Oslo, journalists, artists, and anthropologists. At this time the press described Bartel as his property. But what about Lent and Pastrana? Its really sad we ignore this fact & ill treat people or misbehave tyem on the basis of their outer appearence & we forget that we desrespect God this way! The press, who were given a private view along with men of medicine, praised her very pretty whiskers, double gums, and strange set of teeth, declaring that she dresses with great taste in rich Spanish and other costumes, and after each performance comes among the audience to converse and answer questions.. Standing at only four foot six, labor put her very life at risk. These reactions provide a really interesting insight into how people viewed freaks. Dr John Woolf, the author of The Wonders: Lifting the Curtain on the Freak Show told news.com.au that Pastrana was popular among naturalists, attracting the attention of Alfred Wallace and Charles Darwin. As . Lerma Garay, Antonio. His reaction was ultimately one of wonder and he saw Pastrana as simply wonderful. Julia's mummie disappeared over the next few decades. Eventually, Lent got fed up of It and hired her out to the person who would pay the most for the privilege. The latter condition was caused by a rare disease, undiagnosed in her lifetime, gingival hyperplasia, which thickened her lips and gums. Thank you for sharing this story. lol! The musical supergroup Apparatjik released a single titled "Julia" on March 20, 2020, accompanied by a lyric video. Even after death. Sadly, Pastrana didnt survive either, dying a couple of days after her baby. Fast-forward to February 1990 and Julia was rediscovered in a basement of the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Oslo. Shame that greed played such an important part of her life, she didn't deserve to be treated that way. Julia Pastrana was exhibited during her lifetime, and for quite some time after her death. Nell Rose (author) from England on July 31, 2018: Thanks Anna, I totally agree with you. Pastrana had very few friends, and one, a singer from Vienna, lamented the light fog of sadness that trailed her. Lent sold her corpse and her baby son, to a professor of Moscow University. Perhaps this impacted how Julia saw herself; perhaps this impacted her self-esteem. I voted up for sure. After a Roman Catholic Mass in a local church, Julia's coffin was carried to the town cemetery and buried as a band played the local traditional music. Wow, Nell Rose. Later that year, a tour of Sweden drew considerable public opposition, leading to the bodies being withdrawn from public view. There are no birth, baptism or early records enabling a reconstruction of Julia Pastranas formative years, but she was probably born in 1834 in the Sierra Madre region of Mexico. I feel we still have much to learn from Julia Pastrana, Barbata affirmed. So, finally, that was done. Comisin para la Celebracin del Bicentenario de la Independencia y Centenario de la Revolucin. Barbata emphasized that the story of Pastrana, and people like her, is not confined to the past; it shadows contemporary exploitation, abuse, human trafficking, and discrimination, and recalls the shortcomings that still exist in human rights. In this version, Pastrana lived with her mother until her mother passed away, after which, her uncle sold her to the circus. From the redundancy of the teeth her mouth projected, and her face had a gorilla-like appearance".[15]. The prodigious Julia Pastrana was known by many monikers during her life and perhaps just as many names in death.Both her life and her death are rather. . According to Dr Woolf, against this backdrop were shady deals, cries of immorality, government crackdowns and even theft. You know it's not what is on the outside that matters but it what in a person's heart that matters. Hi Juliet, lol! You always find the most interesting people to write about. lol! Juliet Christie Murray from Sandy Bay Jamaica on November 25, 2012: Well this is truly amazing.This hub could have made you a millionaire but the content was so spell binding and mind boggling that I get the feeling no one saw the ads. According to spectators and those who knew her, Pastrana was an intelligent Indigenous Mexican woman whose life was shaped by brutal racism and cruelty. The baby was torn to pieces. This is where those two accounts of her origin story converge. lol! Nell Rose (author) from England on November 18, 2012: Thanks unknown spy, glad you liked it, nell. The child was born with the same disease as his mother. After Pastrana's death, Lent sold her body and their son's body to Professor Sukolov of Moscow University who permanently preserved them. This story made me tear up. Some people who had deformities which kept them from employment could earn from their problem and help their families. Its jaws, he continued, jagged fangs and ears are terrifically hideous. He concluded that she was a joke of nature.. Yet with all this, she was substantially human: she spoke several languages, sang, danced, was lively and intelligent. After Lent's death, Julia's body would change hands numerous times and be exhibited all over the place by a variety of fairs, circuses, and cabinets of curiosities. Peg Cole from North Dallas, Texas on May 04, 2014: Beautifully written and touching story, Nell. :). Her body was "stuffed",[18] as noted by renowned naturalist and taxidermist Charles Darwin. In the fifties and sixties, the mummies were displayed, mainly as a curiosity. Wikimedia CommonsJulia Pastrana was billed as The Ape Woman and drew crowds all over the United States and Europe. Pastrana, an indigenous woman from Mexico, was born in 1834, somewhere in the state of Sinaloa. The Heartbreaking, Hair-Raising Tale Of Freak Show Star Julia Pastrana, Mexico's Monkey Woman", "The Life and Death of Julia Pastrana, Bearded Woman on Parade", "Julia Pastrana: The 'circus freak' on show even in death", The Variation of Animals and Plants Under Domestication, "Julia Pastrana: A "Monster to the Whole World", "The Variation of Plants and Animals Under Domestication", "Hun ble vist frem som "apekvinne". Julia Pastrana was an indigenous Mexican woman treated as a spectacle in life, and death. Shared and tweeted. Nell Rose (author) from England on February 14, 2013: Thanks Mike, Lovedoctor, and mary, yes she was a very sad character, and used the talents that she had to get through an appalling life, I am so glad she has been taken back to her home and laid to rest, thanks for reading, nell. Julia finally went home but without her baby who was also human. thanks! 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