Francois Peron and Charles-Alexandre Lesueur, "Observations sur le Tablier des femmes Hottentotes"

Galleries and Reading Room

Library

Shop

Café

We’ll be closed on Monday 6 and Tuesday 7 July, reopening as usual on Wednesday 8 July.

We're running paid user research studies to improve Wellcome Collection online

Take part in research

<p>A small notebook containing  Louis de Freycinet's transcription of two long articles by Fran?ois P?ron, together with three plates.  Apparently Freycinet had intended to include this material in the account of the scientific results of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baudin_expedition_of_1800_to_1802">Baudin expedition (1800-3)</a>  whose primary goal was to map the Australian coastline but also included several extensive studies of Australian Aborigines,especially those in Tasmania. While at the Cape of Good Hope on the return journey, P?ron and Lesueur undertook an investigation of the genitals of the ?Bushmen? (Khoisan) women. The labia minora of some Khoisan women were known to extend for several inches ("Hottentot Aprone"), and were of considerable interest to European scientists: a few years later <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Baartman">Sarah (Saartjie) Baartman, the ?Hottentot Venus?</a> was exhibited in London and Paris. In the published volumes on the Baudin expedition, written up by P?ron and Freycinet since Baudin himself died in 1803 on Mauritius during the return journey, Voyage de d?couvertes aux terres australes, ex?cut? par ordre de Sa Majest? l'empereur et roi, sur les corvettes le G?ographe, le Naturaliste, et la go?lette le Casuarina, pendant les ann?es 1800, 1801, 1802, 1803 et 1804 .... [Historique.] publi? par decret imp?rial, sous le minist?re de M. de Champagny et R?dig? ... par M. F. P?ron [et continu? par M. Louis Freycinet] , there is a brief mention of these observations on the "Tablier Hottentote" (vol II, pp. 304-306) but a footnote indicates it was anticipated that they would be written up more extensively in a volume by P?ron on the habits, customs, etc, of the peoples encountered during this voyage. However,  P?ron died shortly afterwards at the relatively early age of 35 from TB without having produced this work.The main article in the notebook is entitled "Exp?dition de D?couvertes aux Terres Australes. Observations sur le Tablier des femmes Hottentotes? Par MM. F. P?ron et C.A. Lesueur, Naturalistes de l'exp?dition de D?couvertes. Lu ? la s?ance particuli?re de la Classe des Sciences Phisiques et Math?matiques de l'Institut le 1er. Pluviose an 13 (21 Janvier 1805)."  It begins with P?ron's discussion of Reinier de Klerk Dibbetz, a Dutch doctor, revolutionary and poet, resident at the Cape and a pioneer of Jenner's smallpox vaccine. His small hospital  was visited by all of the savants of the Baudin expedition. The article was not published during P?ron or Lesueur's lifetime, only a brief note in note in Revue philosophique, litt?raire et politique (an XIII, that is 1805). In 1883 a transcription by Blanchard appeared in the Bulletin de la Soci?t? zoologique de France (vol. 8, pp. 15-33).The second part of the manuscript is Freycinet's transcription of the "R?ponse de Mr. P?ron aux observations critiques de Mr. Dumont sur le tablier des femmes Hotentotes" in response to Dumont's article in the Magasin encyclop?dique for an 13: this appeared in the  Journal de physique, de chimie et d'histoire naturelle (vol. lxi, 1805, pp. 210-17).The three plates, although prepared for publication,  were never in fact published. They consist of Plate LXXX "Afrique Australe. Tablier des femmes Housw?naas ou Boschimans. (Femme Adulte.) La Femme est suppos?e debout, le Tablier de Grandeur naturelle libre et pendant entre les Cuisses."Plate LXXXI "Afrique Australe. Tablier des femmes Houszw?naas ou Boschimans. (Femme Adulte.) Dans cette Figure da Femme est couch?e sur le Dos, les Cuisses ?cart?es ainsi que les deux lobes inf?rieurs du Tablier. (Grandr. Natulle.)"Plate LXXXII "Afrique Australe. Tablier des femmes Houszw?naas ou Boschimans. (Grandeurs Naturelle.) Fig. 1. Femme Adulte couch?e sur le Dos; le Tablier est renvers? et ?panoui sur le Mont de Venus. Fig. 2. Jeune fille assise, le Tablier de grandeur naturelle et pendantlibrement entre les Cuisses."</p>

1 file<br/>Notebook, 23.5 by 19cm., with detailed 29pages manuscript, neat and legible but with many corrections in the hand of Louis de Freycinet; in blue paper wrappers, front manuscript label "Tablier des femmes Bochisman"; together with of 3 hand-coloured engraved plates, untrimmed and with some browning

Francois Peron and Charles-Alexandre Lesueur, "Observations sur le Tablier des femmes Hottentotes"

Licence and re-use