perpetual public spectacle of blackness

This piece delves into an 1810 artwork by William Heath, titled 'A Pair of Broad Bottoms.' It unveils the story of Saartjie Baartman, a South African Khoisan woman conned into a voyage to England by Alexander Dunlop. Promised riches, she became an 'exotic specimen' due to her African heritage and distinctive figure. This article explores how Saartjie Baartman, a famous ethnological exhibit in 1800s Britain, sheds light on body politics, race, and colonial empire dynamics through this artwork.