Human Zoo in Europe ( Late 19th - Early 20th century).

Human Zoo in Europe

Human Zoo in Europe

The Human Zoo or - "ethnological exhibit", "Negro village" and "exposition of people" ) - was quite common in the Western Europe, Special form of entertainment for the general public in the XIX - early XX century, the purpose of which was to show different people from Asia and Africa in primitive savage natural state.

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Zoos were similar, especially in Germany, pronounced spitit of racism, deriving currents of social Darwinism, where people from Africa are often exhibited next to monkeys to show their common origin.

The predecessors of these zoos have been numerous attempts to bring Europeans from overseas voyages natives. Columbus also brought to Spain the Indians show.



In the XIX century, such shows were also popular. One of the famous circus show was F. Barnum, who began his show with an old Negro slave-Joyce Heth, which asserted that she had been a nurse of George Washington. When Joyce died a year later, Barnum began showing Siamese twins Chang and Eng Bunker.

Beginning in the 1870's., Human zoos become a symbol of the second wave of imperialism that swept the Western countries fighting for the colony in the world (see section colonial Africa). Then, like zoos appeared at Antwerp, London, Barcelona, ​​Milan, New York, Warsaw, Hamburg, each of which visited from 200 to 300 thousand people. Often people show was part of the so-called "colonial exhibitions" where represents the various economic success of the colonies. In Germany, a special prominence was Carl Hagenbeck, exposes the tribes with Samoa and Sami (Lapps).

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