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Sunday, June 5, 2022

Anthropology?


This type of photo was used in academic anthropology in the early 20th Century,
but without documentation, I can't vouch for its authenticity.

 

6 comments:

  1. The photo is in the Wellcome Collection in London. The photographer was Edwin Nichol Fallaize (1877-1957). Description: "A young African man posing naked, holding a stick and a piece of cloth, in front of a painted backdrop. Photograph, c.1900."

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    Replies
    1. It is a bit unusual. Cultures which practice circumcision, as a rule, have a nudity taboo, even in hot, humid environments. It may simply be the glans penis and all the way to the scar, hence South Pacific penis gourds and socks.

      My thought is this is "colonial photography", which emphasized genitalia. Saartje Baartman was the extreme form of this.

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    2. Interesting anthropological observations. I need to look up Baartman.

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  2. I'll let others debate about sociology, he looks very appealing to me.

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