|
|
Bernardi Siegfried Albini Anatomes & Chirurgiae in
Academia Batava, quae Leidae est, Professoris DISSERTATIO
SECUNDA. DE SEDE ET CAUSSA COLORIS AETHIOPUM ET CAETERORUM
HOMINUM. ACCEDUNT ICONES COLORIBUS DISTINCTAE. LEIDAE BATAVORUM, Apud
THEODORUM HAAK, Bibliop. Prostat etiam AMSTELAEDAMI, Apud JACOBUM GRAAL,
& HENRICUM DE LETH, MDCCXXXVII |
|
B. S. ALBINI DISSERTATIO DE SEDE ET
CAUSSA COLORIS AETHIOPUM ET CAETERORUM HOMINUM.
Secundam hanc vobis, elegantioris Anatomes Amatores &
Cultores, do Dissertationem. De sede & caussa coloris aethiopum, &
caeterorum hominum, nova quaedam continet, permista notis, sed partim de
novo confirmatis, partim elimatis. Rem si non indignam judicabitis,
in qua aliquid otii teratis, ego non plane perdidisse me bonas horas, quas
impendi, putabo. |
B. S. Albinus, Dissertation on the Seat and
Cause of the Color of Ethiopians and all the Other Human Beings (Leiden:
Theodorum Haak; Amsterdam: Jacobum Graal & Henricum de Leth, 1737).
I.
First Section: Description of Data Relating to the Color of the Skin of
Ethiopians.
The skin ("cutis") of all people, no matter what color they are, is
bright. The brightness, however, is not the same all over the body, since it
is very lightly tincted by the color of a substance which is very close to
it, and which is called, by authority of Malpighius, the "net" ("corpus
reticulare," "reticulum"). |
4 |
DISSERTATIO DE COLORE AETHIOPUM |
Cutem omnibus hominibus, cujuscunque essent coloris, candidam inveni: non
tamen candoris omnino ejusdem, sed leviter tinctam illo colore, cujus est
proximum quod Malpighio auctore dicunt corpus reticulare: & tam
leviter, ut cum res in aethiopibus manifestior ob colorem eorum
saturatiorem esse deberet, ne nigerrimis quidem tinctam cutem esse, primo
adspectu putaverim. Quo minus mirum, nive candidiorem aethiopi esse
dixisse Riolanum,1 albissimam
Ruyschium:2 albam certe
Malpighius3 dicere potuit, candidam
Santorini.4 Cum vero aliquantulum
colore reticuli tinctam este trado, noli, quaeso, putare, aliquid
decepisse me reticulum. Scio, quam facile contingat, quando cutis à
reticulo liberatur, frustulum remanere. Scio, & saepius, quam
voluissem, expertus sum, reticulum facile vel ex parte, vel in totum
tabescere, & humoris fusci specie summam cutem plus minus insicere:
quale quid etiam Ruyschio contigit, ut subnigra apparuerit cutis
aethiopissae; colore illo, ut monet, inducto ab epidermide.5
Verum non minus quoque scio, habuisse
cutem aethiopum, quorum examinavi, levissimi quid de colore reticuli,
etaimsi reticulum integerrime detraxerim, nihil quidquam vel cute vitiata,
vel reticulo: non aliter autem, tanquam si ob proximitatem levissime
perfusa cutis esset colore reticuli. Atque adeo id leve apparuit, ut
ad colorem aethiopum efficiendum non nisi perparum cutis dicit
1 Anthrop. Lib. II. Cap. 4.
2 Cur. renov. n°. 6. 59. 87.
3 Exercit. epist. de Tactus org. |
4 Observ. Anat. Cap. I. §. 1.
5 Cur. renov. n°. 59. |
|
Riolan, Ruysch,
and Malpighi claim all three that the skin of Ethiopians is bright, that is,
not dark, although they use different words for the same concept: Riolan
says "whiter than snow," Malpighi says "white," Ruysch says "very white,"
Santorini says "bright." [Albinus returns to this question on page 6.]
The "net" ("reticulum") is very vulnerable, once it has been torn off the
skin, as has been proved through experiments.
Albinus claims that the skin ("cutis") is only to a very small extent ("non
nisi perparum") responsible for the Ethiopians' color. |
possit conferre. Coloris illius praecipua sedes in
reticulo est: est & in epidermide; quod etiam à diligentissimo
Santorini animadversum.6 Nec tamen
errasse Riolanus dicendus est, quod solam cuticulam nigrore illo infectam
tradit.7 Nam ex quo postea
epidermidem & reticulum effecere, id unam epidermidem antiquiores
dixerunt: quemadmodum etaim Ruyschius, qui reticulum agnovit, tamen, quasi
oblitus, meminit8 aethiopis cuticulae
nigricantis; de cuticula una cum reticulo intelligendus, ut qui
epidermidem aethiopis cineream dixit,9
reticulum autem semper invenisse se totum nigrum, tradidit:10 similiterque meminit11 cutis aethiopissae, cui, ut paullo ante
annotavimus, ab epidermide color subniger inductus fuerit; cum de illa
ipsa epidermide, à qua color ille inductus fuerit, dixisset, coloris
fuisse cinerei, corpore reticulari nigro. Et revera unum aliquod
tegmen cutem extrinsecus vestit, in lamellas plus minus dividuum: cujus
tegminis pars interior, quae cutem proxime contingit, est quod dicunt
reticulum; exterior, quam antiquo nomine epidermidem. Ejusdemque
naturae sunt: reticulum autem mollius, & coloratius. Itaque
partes illae cohaerent inter se, ut altera alterius, nisi continuatio,
certe pars dicenda sit; quod apparere scripsit12 clarissimus Winslow. Aethiopi igitur
reticulum fuscum est, & quasi nigrum. Quocirca recte
Malpighius
6 Observ. an. Cap. I. §. 1.
7
Anthrop. Lib. II. Cap. 4. 8 Thesaur. II. Ass. V. n°.
12. 9 Curae renov. n°. 59. 87. |
10 Advers.
Decad. III. 8. 11 Curae renov. n°. 59. 12
Exposit. anat. traitées tegum §. 40. |
| The most
important seat of the color is in the "net" ("reticulum") and in the upper
skin ("epidermis") [see Santorini, note 6]. These two substances together
were called "epidermis" by the older authors, or "cuticula" (lit. "little
skin") by Riolan. Ruysch claims that Ethiopians have an epidermis
which is ash-like [see note 9] and that their reticulum is always
black [see note 10]. The skin, cutis, he says, gets its almost
black color from the epidermis [see note 11]. The skin, cutis,
Albinus goes on to explain, is covered from the outside by a layer, which is
divided into parts like small metal plates ("lamellae"). The interior part
of this layer is called reticulum, the exterior part is called
epidermis. They are of the same substance, but the reticulum is
more soft and has more brightness. They are inseparable from each other.
|
6 |
DISSERTATIO DE COLORE AETHIOPUM |
conjecit,13 (nam, quod à
praeclaro Morgagno jam annotatum,14 non
nisi conjecit) nigrorem aethiopum à corpore reticulari effici: non recte
autem, effici totum.13 Quod vero ad colorem
reticuli attinet, quem nigrum plerique dixerunt; eum cum eximio
Morgagno15 adhuc fuscum inveni, habentem
speciem nigri, ut eleganter de aethiopum colore Macrobius.
16 Epidermis coloris ejusdem est, cujus
reticulum: sed multo minus colorata; qualis fere color lamellae tenuis
& perlucidae cornu nigri, cui assimilat17
clarus Winslow. De colore autem
epidermidis aethiopis maxime differre inter se videntur egregii Anatomici,
Malpighius, Ruyschius, Santorini: Malpighio dicente18 albam esse, Ruyschio19 cineream, Santorino20 nigram. Sed fortrasse nomine differunt, non re. Potuit Malpighius albam dixisse, quoniam certe atritatem aethiopis non
habet. Potuit Ruyschius cineream, quoniam ad cinereum colorem
accedit. Potuit Santorini nigram, quoniam habet de fusco illo
colore, quem nigrum dicere solemus. Sed qui dixerunt21 aeque albam esse ac caeterorum hominum; eorum
dictquem colorem dem, non invenio. Reticuli color, ad quem redeo,
saturatior est, qua id cuti proximum: ab altera parte, qua epidermidi
conjunctum, jam
13 Exerc. epist. de Tactus
org. 14 Advers. anat. II. Anim. 4. 15
Ibid. 16 In Somn. Scipion. Lib. II. Cap.
10.
17 Exposit. anat. traité des tegum §.
41. |
18 Exerc. epist. de Tactus organ.
19 Curae
renovat. n°. 59. & 87. 20 Observat. anat. Cap. I. §.
1. 21 Histoir. de l'Acad. Roy. des Scienc. Ann. 1702.
Divers. observ. Anatom. n°. 13. |
|
The reticulum of Ethiopians is dark-colored, like black. Malpighi
[see note 13] is right in assuming that the blackness of the Ethiopians'
skin stems from the corpus reticulare, but he is wrong in assuming
that it stems entirely from it.
As to the color
of the reticulum, Albinus found it to be not black, but just
dark-colored ("fuscus"), with a shade of black (or, looking like black, "habentem
speciem nigri," an expression borrowed from Macrobius, [note 16]). Morgagnus
[see note 15] claims the same thing. The epidermis has the same
color, but it has a lesser brightness. Different scientists describe the
color of the epidermis in varying terms: Malpighius calls it white,
Ruysch ash-like, and Santorini black. Albinus assumes that this is just a
matter of terminology; they meant to describe exactly the same color. |
liquantum exstinctus. Itaque intelligi potest, qui
fiat, ut extrinsecus aethiops tam fuscus non sit, quam est pars intima
reticuli sui. Nequit intimi reticuli color integre apparere per
corpus reticuli, & per epidermidem, quoniam tantum perluciditatis non
habent. Sic Littre animadvertit,22
reticulum, cujus nigror carbonem ligneum assimilaret, per epidermidem
tantum apparuisse ad similitudinem fuliginis. Non aequaliter autem
colorata est pars illa intima reticuli: qua enim contingit & implet
intervalla papillarum cutis, ibi coloratior, quam qua papillas ipsas
ambit. Cujus rei intelligendae caussa, obiter hic monuisse
sufficiet, reticulum non esse foraminulis pertusum, per quae papillae
cutis penetrent; neque ea re assimile esse reticulo, quale bovis linguam
Malpighius habere scribit. Ex cute eminent tubercula perexigua,
quibus densissime per totam amplitudinem suam consita quasi est;
praeterquam in plantis ac volis, respondentibusque partibus digitorum; ubi
non tubercula, sed filorum constipatorum species: papillas & tubercula
illa, & fila appellant; putamusque tactus instrumenta esse.
Huic papillatae cuti superinducta epidermis vestit & papillas, &
intervalla earum: quo fit, ut pars ejus interior, hoc est, reticulum, tot
talesque habeat foveolas, ceu vaginulas; quot qualesque sunt papillae;
quemadmodum apparet, cum de cute & de epidermide subtiliter &
accurate detractum reticulum est. Atque in foveolis illis color
minus
22 Histoir. de l'Academ. Roy. des Scienc. loc.
cit. | Back
to the color of the reticulum: the part which is closer to the
cutis is fuller, the other part, linked with the epidermis, is
dimmer (like fading). This is why the Ethiopian is not quite as dark as the
inner part of the reticulum is, for the bright color of the inside
cannot shine altogether through to the outside, the epidermis not
being very translucent [see also Littré note 22].
The inner part of the reticulum does not
have an equal, an uniform brightness of color either. For where it is close
to and fills the (intervals consisting of) the nipple-like protuberances
("papillae" - the fiber-like ducts Camper speaks about on p. 15 of his
speech), it is more colorful than where it goes around the protuberances
themselves. Very numerous small humps ("tubercula") stick out of the skin,
through which the protuberances of the skin penetrate. Another word for
these protuberances ("papillae") or humps ("tubercula") is "fila," "threads"
and, says Albinus, we assume them to be the instruments through which we
feel. This hump-covered skin in covered by the epidermis; the inner
part of it, the reticulum, has little holes of the same number and
kind as the skin's protuberances. |
8 |
DISSERTATIO DE COLORE AETHIOPUM |
fuscus est, mediis in locis saturatior. Haec
coloris in minimis his partibus differentia. Longe major in dissitis
ejusdem reticuli partibus. Ut enim idem omnibus aethiopis partibus
color non est, ita neque reticuli; quod colori partium ubique respondent
suo. Habeo pulchrae aethiopis, cui erat color ille venuste una cum
nitore & splendore nigricans, qui in primis laudatur: habeo portiones
reticuli ejus, quarum alias de facie detraxi, alias de mammis, ventre,
brachio, femore, genu, crure, pede, manu, planta, vola, digitis manus,
pedisque; quae tantopere differunt inter se colore, ut unius ejusdemque
aethiopis esse dubitares. In planta, & calce, inque vola,
internaque parte digitorum, quae albicant aethiopibus, etiam reticulum ad
rationem atritatis aethiopum pene albicat, coloris maxime leucophaei:
neque tamen aequaliter coloratum ibi est, sed maculis paullo
saturatioribus quasi aspersum. Minus quoque saturatum, &
similiter maculosum est reticulum, quod unguibus
subjacet. In
caeteris hominibus eadem coloris sedes, eademque ratio. Habeo
epidermidem, quam detraxi de superiore parte brachii foeminae
candidissimae; cui epidermidi adhaeret reticulum omnino candidum, & ob
id difficulter discernendum ab epidermide; quale in candidis hominibus,
nec multum solis aestui expositis, semper se invenisse Ruyschius
annotavit.23 Idem meminit24 de reticulo, quod ejusdem fere
23 Advers. an. Decad. III. 8. | 24
Curae poster. n°. 8. |
| In these holes, the color is less
dark, in the parts between the holes it is fuller. The surface of the
reticulum on the other hand varies even more strongly in color, for as
the Ethiopians do not have the same color all over their body, so neither
does the reticulum. Here, Albinus mentions the samples of skin from
the different parts of the body which he dissected from a Negro woman; they
varied in their shade of darkness. People from other races have the same
origin for the color of their skin, and the same principles are valid.
Albinus mentions an example: the epidermis of the upper arm of a
woman with very white skin: that epidermis is attached to a
reticulum which is completely white, and which is therefore hard to
discern from the epidermis.
Ruysch [see note 23] mentions the same phenomenon. |
boris fuerit, atque epidermis. Habeo epidermidem
mammae foeminae subfuscae, ubi & reticulum subsuscum. Aliam
foeminae eleganter fuscae, ubi talis etiam coloris reticulum. Alias,
ubi subflavum, quale Ruyschius aliquoties memorat.25 Et in colore subflavo ipso differentia.
Ruyschius,26 semiaethiopis dilutius
nigrum esse. In planta pedis europaeorum, qualia idem quoque Ruyschius
memorat,27 plerumque luteolum; ficuti etiam
in vola, internaque parte digitorum, tum manus, tum pedis: quorum aliquot
exempla servo. Saturatior color in genitalibus, & in pube.
Servo de pube viri cum epidermide reticulum, quod admodum fuscum:
foeminae, quod luteum. Servo de scroto europaei, quod tantummodo
aliquanto minus fuscum, quam quae de tibia aethiopis habeo: magis etiam
fuscum de pene, ut aethiopis esse putares. Ac semper epidermis plus
minus habet de colore reticuli sui: quoniam vero in europaeis epidermis
non ita multum ab albore abest, idcirco videtur Ruyschius indiscriminatim
dixisse cineraceam,28
candidiorem, 29
albissimam;30 etiamsi reticulum
esset subflavum.
Ita autem color inhaeret in reticulo & epidermide, ut servent eum in
aqua, servent in spiritu vini; quod de reticulo Littre jam occupavit,31 qui portionem cutis
25 Thes. III. n°. 81. & Thes. V. n°.
5. & Thes. X. n°. 2. 26 Advers. an Decad. III. 8 & Curae poster. n°.
7. 27 Thes. I. Ass. 3. n°. 4. & Thes. III. n°.
34. & Curae renov. n°. 79. |
28 Thes. V. n°.
5. 29 Thes. III. n°. 81. 30 Thes. X. n°.
2. 31 Histoir. de l'Acad. Roy. des Scienc. ann. 1702.
Divers. Observ. anat. n°. 13. |
| Albinus has
evidence which points to the same direction. On the other hand, there is
contrary evidence, namely the virtual auburn-colored ("subflavus") and
yellow ("luteolus") reticulum, which is found on the hollow part of
the hand, the inner side of the fingers, the hands and feet of Europeans. He
also mentions the brown color of the reticulum of Europeans' privy
parts, which is also mentioned by Petrus Camper. It is always the case that
the epidermis has more or less the same color as the reticulum.
Therefore, in the European races, the epidermis is almost white.
The color of reticulum and epidermis is resistant to water and
wine [see Littré note 31]. |
10 |
DISSERTATIO DE COLORE AETHIOPUM |
aethiopis maceravit aqua tepida dies continuos septem;
aliamque spiritu vini; nulloque modo neque mutatus color reticuli, neque
aqua, spiritusve, ejusdem colore tincta. In spiritu vini puro, in
quem experiundi caussa epidermidem & reticulum demersi; aliisque
illius generis liquoribus colorem suum tam multos annos apud me
servaverunt, ut credibile sit, semper servatura. In aqua reticulum
servat donec ipsum dissolvatur: sed quia mollius & tenerius,
maceratione aquae facile dissolvitur, mistumque aquae, tingere eam colore
suo videtur; cum contra epidermis longe durabilior sit. Atque hic
laudandus doctissimus Santorini, qui epidermidem aethiopis ab omni
reticulo liberatam maceravit aqua per plures hebdomadas, & neque aquam
infectam nigrore ejus, neque ipsam albam effectam fuisse observavit:
reticulum autem post brevem macerationem pene diffluxisse, suoque nigrore
subjectam cutem facile infecisse, manusque, & scalpelli aciem.32
Quid vero esse potest caussae, cur colore illo alii atque alii homines
adeo discrepent? in primis, cur nigricent aethiopes, albi nos simus?
Ni fallor, quod suum parentes colorem in liberos propagant; quod Strabo
dicit,33 in utero xατα
δπεξματιxην
διαςεδιν tales fieri, quales sint, qui
genuerint. Aethiops foemina si cum mare aethiope rem habuerit,
aethiopem, ni quid forte ludat natura, gignit: alba si cum albo,
album. Unde fortasse Herodotus, aut à quo accepit,
32 Observ. anat. Cap. I. §. 1. |
33
Geograph. Lib. XV. |
| The reticulum will dissolve
in water after a short while, the epidermis after a longer while, but
both retain their color until the end.
II. Second Section: What is the
Cause of the Difference in Color between Races, More Specifically, Why Are
We, Europeans, White, Whereas the Ethiopians are Black. A number of
possibilities are offered. First: the ancient tradition. Second: the problem
considered in light of the origin of humanity according to Christian
Revelation.
(i) The cause is, first of all, the genetic process, more specifically,
the constitutional predisposition of the sperm. Albinus mentions all the
ancient theories in this field, which all originate in Strabo [note 33] and
which are also discussed by Petrus Camper in his own oration.
|
ET CAETERORUM HOMINUM. |
11 |
putavit34 aethiopum
genituram, quam in mulieres emittunt, atram esse, ut corpus; cum
caeterorum hominum alba sit: quem de re ipsa jam olim reprehendit35 Aristoteles. Sed vicini fideris vapore torreri
aethiopas, adustisqe similes gigni, non esse dubium, Plinius tradit: 36 quos ideo Lucretius dicit37 percoctos calore. Quae antiquorum plerorumque
fuit sententia. De Theodecte refert38
Strabo, sic ajisse,
Ης αγχιτεζμωυ
ηλιος διΦζηλατωυ
Σxστεινον
ανξος
εξεχζωσε
λιγνυος
Εις σωματ
ανσζων
Quod fere Tibullus,39 fusci, quos
india torret, Solis & admotis inficit ignis equis.
Galenus fic
explicat;40 Aethiopibus naturam cutis ex
ambientis aestu, & naturali calore foras acto, ustam & nigram
reddi, toto corpore naturalis quidem caloris exiguam obtinente portionem,
sed alieno, atque adscititio incalescente. Refutavit autem
Theodectem, unaque cum eo idem sentientes, Onesicritus,41 dicens calorem non esse nigroris caussam, non
enim esse illis, qui in ventre sunt matris, quos nondum sol attigit.
Cui obstare videtur, quod nuper nati aethiopum eundem colorem habent, quem
alborum, auctore Labate;42 certe nigri non
sunt. Non obstat
34 Thalia. 35 De Hist. Anim. Lib.
III. Cap. 22. 36 Nat. Hist. Lib. II. Cap.
78. 37 De Rer. Nat. Lib. VI. vers. 722. &
1107. |
38 Geograph. Lib. xv. 39 Lib. II.
6. 40 De Temperament. Lib. II. Cap. 6. 41 Apud
Strabon. Geogr. Lib. xv. 42 Nouveau Voy. aux Iles de
l'Amerique Tom. II. Chap. 6.
|
| Besides
Strabo: Herodotus, Aristotle, Galen, and, cited by Strabo [note 41]
Onesicritus. |
12 |
DISSERTATIO DE COLORE AETHIOPUM |
autem: nam nuper natis illis, eodem Labate auctore,
43 genitalia,
& partes ubi ungues è cute nasuntur, jam tum nigricant, ut ex eo
internoscantur; iidemque illi infantes infuscari elapsis octo vel decem à
partu diebus incipiunt:44 ad quem modum
etiam alborum infantes primo rubelli sunt, sensimque deinde colorem mutant.
Adde Onesicrito, aethiopes delatos in regiones,45 quarum
incolae nunquam fuerunt nigri, inque ipsas glaciales mundi plagas, ubi non
amplius exuruntur sole, aethiopes manere, talesque gignere, modo cum
similibus misceantur: albos non torreri in adurente illa aethiopum regione,
neque quos procreant in ea foetus. Addi quoque argumentum potest ex
cicatricibus, quae, si quas aethiopes exceperint insigniores, ut postquam
aqua ferventi adusti sunt,46 fere albicant, & non
fiunt concolores. Quo non differunt aethiopes à caeteris
hominibus, quibus omnibus cicatrices candidiores sunt: loco enim verae cutis
& reticuli cum epidermide, nascitur callosi quid, candidius, laeve; quod
cicatricem appellamus. At vis tamen solis adurens apparet in
heliocaustis, quorum corpora sole fuscata. In iis reticulum Ruyschius
flavescens invenit.47 Sole colorari
homines, non dubium: eousque autem, ut nigrescant, non constat. Et ne
dici possit diuturnitate temporis alborum progenies ad postremum solis
ardoribus adusta itura, obstat alba, aut illius tantum coloris, qualis
43
Ibid.
44 Ibid.
45 Labat nouvelle relation de l'Afrique occident. II. Part.
Chap. 14. |
46 Ibid.
47 Cur. poster. n°. 9 & Advers. an. Deca. III. 8. |
|
Albinus adds to this material the evidence from scars: when the skin has
been damaged, the scar, bearing evidence of the healed damage, is white —
even in black people. The theory that the white race eventually turns
black when it lives in the Ethiopian regions, does not hold water, for it is
known that, although the power of the sun affects the skin, it turns the
skin red; not black. An illustration of this are the Moors, who live close
to the Ethiopian region, but whose skin color remains somewhere between
black and white. |
ET CAETERORUM HOMINUM. |
13 |
est, cum candorem perdidit sole corpus, gens maurorum, in
torrente illa Africa aethiopibus nigris finitima.48 Pleraque
ex dictis valent quoque contra Onesicritum, in aquis caussam ponentem,
49 quemadmodum peregrina pecora aquam
potantia, colores suos in regioni ei familiarem mutent colorem. Sed si
spermaticae diathesi suum tum albi tum nigri colorem debent; qui fieri
potuit, ut à primis illis parentibus, cujuscunque coloris fuerint,
progenies orta fuerit tum candida cute tum nigra? An dicemus parentes
illos nobis fuisse concolores; primorum autem aethiopum coloris caussam, ut
Strabo velle50 videtur, tribuendam soli,
ejusque adustioni, per vehementem quandam summi humoris deminutionem: ac
deinde nigros nigros procreasse
xατα σπεζματιxην
διαξεδιν? Non nigrescunt
albi, etiamsi inter aethiopes vivant, eodemque adurantur sole, ut supra
annotatum. An dicemus sensim in aliis atque aliis colorem degenerasse?
quemadmodum cum nigri miscent se candidis, ex iis oriuntur leucophaei: cum
leucophaei rursus candidis, leucophaeis quoque oriuntur candidiores, ac sic
color niger paullatim exstinguitur, tandemque omnis deperditur.51 Sed
ad hanc degenerationem semper primo requiritur, ut exstent tum nigra cute,
tum candida, è quorum miscela degeneratio proveniat: ex nigris enim
candidi non proveniunt, ut neque ex candidis nigri. An dicemus casu
natum primum nigrum, aut candidum; illum è parentibus albis, hunc è
48
Labat Afriq. II. Part. Chap. 14.
49 Strabo Geograph. Lib. xv.
50 Ibid. |
51 Labat Ameriq. Tom. II. Chap. 6 & Afriq. II. Part. Chap. 14 |
|
(ii) Accepting the fact that genetics ("diathesis spermaticae"
the constitutional predisposition of the sperm) is responsible for the color
of the skin, how do we account for the fact that two wholly different races
stem from Adam and Eve, whatever color their skin was?
Here, a number of possibilities are considered.
[1.] Do we assume, agreeing with what seems
to be Strabo's opinion [note 50], that the blacks originally had our color
but that the sun made them black on account of a diminution of the summus
humor (one of the four liquids of the human body), and that, following
that process, the black race came into being through the constitutional
predisposition of sperm?
[2.] Or should we say that the color
gradually degenerated (or: changed)? This theory is rejected by Albinus
because whites by definition only produce white progeniture and blacks only
black progeniture.
|
14 |
DISSERTATIO DE COLORE AETHIOPUM |
nigris? Fieri id potuisse, exemplum à Labate
proditum52 declararet; exstitisse foeminam,
quae nata inter aethiopes, parentibus pernigris, ipsa omnino candida fuerit;
conjunctaque aethiopi, infantes procreaverit pernigros. An
assentiendum Labati,53 Adamum fuisse rubrum,
aut rubellum, quoniam Moyses scribat, Adamum ex luto terrae formatum; terra
autem virgo dicta, plerumque rubra, aut subrussa sit; unde & nomen acceperit
primus homo, adam significante rubrum vel rufrum. Haud dubie autem
Evam, quae è costa illius hominis creata sit, fuisse coloris ejusdem, aut
fere ejusdem, id est, fieri potuisse, ut Adami color in Eva inceperit
aliquantum exstingui, & ad album accesserit: & cum magis magisque exstinctus
fuerit color in infantibus eorum, & in horum deinde progenie; primi hominis
colorem in candidum maxime ad naturam accommodate degenerasse. Postea
candorem illum aliquantum obscuratum, indeque colorem ortum asiaticorum, &
americanorum. Unde aliqui fortasse inferrent, quanquam fieri ipse non
posse putet, asiaticorum quoque & americanorum colorem magis & magis
obscuratum, abiisse tandem in fuscum aethiopum: nam ut obscurari possit
albus, sic & obscuratus ille color obscurari magis magisque. An potius
nigrities nota fuit, quam Deus Caino, postquam is fratrem suum occiderat,
impresserit, ut impediret, ne ad vindicandam caedem occideretur Cainus ab
illis, qui eum offenderent? quae sententia à Labate memorata.54
Tempore autem diluvii nigra Caini
52 Afriq. II. Part. Chap. 14.
53 Ibid. |
54 Ibid. |
|
[3.] Or should we say that the first
offspring was either black or white, one person stemming from white parents;
the other from black parents. That this is possible is illustrated by an
example from Labat [note 52]: he knew of a woman, born from Ethiopians, who
was completely white, and who, having married a black, begot completely
black children.
[4.] Or should we accept, with Labat [note
53] that Adam had a red-colored, or reddish colored skin, because Moses
writes that he was formed out of the clay of the earth ("Adam" meaning
literally "red" or "russet")? It is not to be doubted that Eve had the same
color as Adam, for she was created from his side, or almost the same, for it
is possible that in Eve the color lost some of its glow and came closer to
white. Therefore, it is possible that their offspring was double-colored:
one group became completely white, one group became red (origin of the races
of Asians and Americans, i.e. American Indians), and finally, as one might
suppose - although Labat himself did not think that - turned into the black
color of the Ethiopians, for white can become darks, as can red. [5.] Or
should we accept the opinion, mentioned by Labat [note 54], that blackness
was a mark, put on Cain by God after he killed his brother, in order to save
him from his revengers? At the time of the Deluge, however, Cain's black
offspring was not saved in Noah's Ark, for he saved only whites, the
offspring of Seth, which didn't mix with the offspring of the sinful Cain. |
ET CAETERORUM HOMINUM. |
15 |
progenies non quidem cum Noacho servata, cum quo tantum
evaserint uxor ejus, filiique tres cum suis uxoribus, omnes coloris candidi,
utpote progenies Sethi, quae non commiscuerit se cum peccatrice illa Caini:
sed cum diluvium non fuerit universale, nisi in plagis mundi tunc cognitis;
in incognitas recessere multae gentes, & inter eas nigra Caini progenies?
An, quod alii, Chami filius Canaan niger factus cum execratus eum est
Noachus? De his certe non magis constat, quam de hac aethiopum
Marabaeorum traditione,55 ex tribus filiis
Noachi unum fuisse candidum, alterum fuscum coloris adustioris, tertium
nigrum; & uxores fuisse coloris sui quamque mariti: atque ab his orta tria
illa colore maxime diversa hominum saecla. Qui vero in prima rerum
omnium generatione varias animantium naturas è terra vivas procreatas
existimarunt,56 iis, ut omnis generis caeterorum animalium formae,
ita hominum quoque species enasci vi illa terrae facile potuerunt.
Mirum, quomodo aethiopes à nobis non solummodo colore, sed aliis
etiam differant: cujus tam magnae differentiae, ut diu quaeras, quae caussa
fuerit, fortasse non reperies.
Sed color hominis non
tantum est mixtus ex colore cutis, & reticuli, & epidermidis: accedit enim
color humorum, qui continentur & in canalibus cuti subjectis, & in illis,
qui cuti ipsi inhaerent. Caeruleae venae per cutem plus minus
apparent, & in finitimas
55 Ibid. |
56 Diodor. Sic. Biblioth. Lib. I. |
|
Is it
possible that the blacks, together with many other nations, took refuge in
at that time unknown parts of the world and were thus saved? Although Labat
himself did not think so. [6.] Or is the assumption of still others true,
that Canaan, the son of Ham, was made black when Noah cursed him.
[7.] All this is not more certain than that tradition known among the
Marabaeic Ethiopeans, that of Noah's three sons: one was black, the other
red , and the third white; likewise their wives, and that thus the three
major human races came into being.
[8.] Those who consider [note 56] that originally many sorts of animal
life were procreated by nature, assume likewise that different species of
humans could have been formed by the power of nature. It is noteworthy how
much the Ethiopians differ from us, not only in color, but also in other
aspects. These differences are so great, that one might never find the cause
for them. |
16 |
DISSERT. DE COL. AET. ET CAETER. HOM. |
partes fundunt coloris sui argumentum. Quam ob rem
alius, caeteris paribus, color est macilento, in quo venae, subjectae cuti,
eminent conspicuae: alius obeso, in quo eaedem illae venae pingui immersae
sunt. De humoribus, qui in ipsius cutis canalibus continentur, res,
praeter alia, apparet in iis, qui rubore suffunduntur. Confirmare videntur
multi morbi, in quibus humorum color naturalis degenerat, aut certe aliter,
quam secundum naturam, colorati humores in canales illos penetrant.
Quemadmodum in ictero, ubi bilis colore infecta cutis apparet, & ubi humores
colore illo infectos esse, urina satis indicat. Pallor cachecticorum,
hydropicorum, chlorosi laborantium, idem declarat: idem alia declarant non
pauca. At in morbis tamen reticulum quoque decolorari, ac fortasse etiam
epidermidem, argumento est, quod de aethiopibus referunt;57 colorem,
cum aegrotant, mutare pro gravitate, & pro diuturnitate morbi; pallidos
fieri, & coloris, qualis est aquae cui fuligo admixta; saepe cuprei. Quae
decoloratio in aethiopibus, quam in nobis, ob colorem eorum manifestior est.
Adde quod color mutetur
cutis vel distentu, vel laxitate. Purior idcirco obesis, ac splendentior,
quam macilentis. 57 Labat Ameriq. Tom. IV. Chap. 7 &
Afriq. II. Part. Chap. 14.
F I N I S. |
On top of that, the color of men is not only a product of skin, reticulum
and epidermis; one must also take into account the color of the
fluids, contained in the canals under the skin and within the skin. Blue
veins shine through the skin, more or less, and influence the neighboring
parts with their color. Thus, thin, fat, sick and healthy people of the same
race can vary in color of their skin (Albinus mentions a series of
examples). |
Albinus's anatomical preparation of a thumbnail from an African woman. Leiden, circa 1735 — Universiteit Leiden, Anatomisch Museum, Leiden, The Netherlands. Click the image to see a photo of the original colored (one of the first) engraving [page 19]:
EXPLANATIO ICONUM.
Has idem ille Ladmiral, nec minore artificio, confecit, qui arteriarum &
venarum intestini hominis, quam anno proxime superiore edidi. Is laudabili
artis suae singularis specimina exhibendi studio incensus, non destitit me
donec obtinuerit rogare, ut opportunitatem darem. Ego, postquam dedi, non
potui quin aliquid scriberem, quo illustrarem quas fecerat icones.
|
ICONIS I.
- Pars cutis mammae foeminae aethiopis, una cum epidermide & reticulo. Cutis nuda, qua parte reticulum ipsi adhaerebat.
- B Reticulum, cuti extrinsecus adhaerens; nudum, &
liberatum ab epidermide, quae ipsi extrinsecus adhaerebat.
- C Epidermis detracta, dependens, eaque parte
expressa, qua reticulo, à quo separata, adhaerebat.
- D Reticulum solum, detractum de cute, dependens;
itemque separatum ab epidermide. Ex interiore parte, qua cutem contingebat,
exhibitum.
- E Albae pilorum radices, è cute protractae; pilis
reticulo adhuc inhaerentibus.
| |
ICONIS II. -
Pars epidermidis foeminae ejusdem, una cum adhaerente reticulo; detracta de
calce, & parte pedis illa, quae supra calcem est. Ex interiore parte, qua
reticulum est exhibita.
- A Crassitudo sectae epidermidis.
- B Pars, quae calcem vestiebat, ubi reticulum
longe minus coloratum.
- C Hac parte epidermidis vestiebatur pars pedis,
quae mox supra calcem est: eaque pars longe tenuior est, & habet.
- D Reticulum coloratius.
| |
ICONIS III. - Unguis,
detractus de pollice manus foeminae ejusdem, una cum epidermidis portione,
cui circumcirca inhaeret & continuatus est. Ex interiore parte, qua cutem
spectat, exhibitus.
- A A Reticulum epidermidis.
- B C Reticulum unguis;
- B qua unguem vestit, coloratius:
- C qua radicem unguis, albicantius.
| |
HTML code
for Greek Letters
Greek
letters large |
Philological Museum
Orbis Latinus
|
|
book@petruscamper.com
[ home ]
[ reviews ] [ texts ] [ projects ] [ order ] [ sitemap ]
Miriam Claude Meijer, Ph.D. © All Rights Reserved
|