Julia Pastrana Comes Home
Phantoms and Monsters, Tuesday, February 12, 2013
The remains of Julia Pastrana, a Mexican who was paraded in fairs and circuses as the "ape woman" in 19th century Europe, have returned home from Norway 153 years after her death.
Pastrana suffered from a rare disease—congenital generalized hypertrichosis terminalis, or CGHT—that covered her face and body with thick hair and gave her fat lips and gums. Born in 1834, the woman, who measured 1.34 meters (four feet, five inches) and had a gift for dancing and singing, was brought to Europe by an American businessman to be shown in circuses and fairs. She died in 1860 and her mummified body was acquired in 1921 by a Norwegian show promoter who displayed her remains in "freak" shows. Her remains were handed to the University of Oslo in 1996. Authorities in her home state of Sinaloa, in northwestern Mexico, demanded that her remains be returned home. A Mexican foreign ministry official said the body was already in Mexico and would be sent to Sinaloa for a proper burial. - Phys.org
[A number of individuals, including myself and Igor Burtsev, have expressed an interest in having Julia's DNA tested as a possible connection to Bigfoot DNA studies-DD]
Great to see you're back :). I personally don't see why she would have a connection to "Bigfoot", as she did have the disease. Were you able to read my Northwest WildMan article, and did you like it? Thanks, and please know that I am praying for your help.
ReplyDeleteYou will notice I have this filed under "Mexican Wildman" by preference although I suspect she is related to the Eastern Bigfoot or American Alman, the more Neanderthal-like kind. Yes I read your blogand in fact I have been reccommending it.
ReplyDeleteWhen you say "she had the disease" you are speaking in terms of a common miosconception. There is only one gene which expresses a hairy body coating, and it is the usual condition among mammals to have the hairy coat. Most modern people do not have the hairy covering and the gene is switched off. In cases when the gene is switched on again, it is called Hypertrichosis. It is actually more a matter of perspective than a disease.
Best Wishes, Dale D.
Thank you. That's very interesting, I never knew that Hyperteichosis was actually the result of a gene being switched on! That's very interesting, I've always heard it referred to as a disease so I didn't know. I wonder if the Bryan Sykes DNA Study will have DNA from both the American Gigantopithecus (what you call Western Bigfoot) and the American Neanderthaloids (what you call Eastern Bigfoot)! It would be totally awesome if we proved that two species of thought to be extinct primates are still in America. It would be truly earth shattering.
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