The topic of bearded women has always been a source of controversy. Culturally we have been conditioned to view facial hair on women as a social stigma. Still, that doesn’t mean I’m not intrigued by the topic.
Female beard growth is mostly the result of hormone imbalance or a rare genetic disorder. Generally labelled as freaks, women with hypertrichosis are forced to hide or remove their facial hair whereas men can let it flow freely. How fair is that? In recently months, Mariam, the 49 year old Bearded Lady from Germany has helped bring the topic to the forefront – she is a pioneer for hirsute women worldwide.
As a rule I prefer Beards on men but the following historical facts on bearded ladies are fascinating.
Clémentine Delait and her husband kept a café in Thaon-les-Vosges, in Lorraine, France. According to later accounts, Clémentine Delait visited a carnival, saw a bearded woman with some stubble and boasted that she could grow a better beard herself. Her husband bet 500 francs to back her. The bet attracted many more customers to the Delaits’ café and they changed the name to Le Café de La Femme a Barbe, “The café of the Bearded Woman”. Delait also sold photographs of herself.
Clémentine Delait
Swiss-born Josephine Clofullia (1827-1875) was one of the hairiest of all historical bearded ladies, having been (at least reportedly) covered in hair at birth, and in possession of a two-inch beard before she was nine years old. At age 14, she went pro and toured the continent, picking up a husband and a diamond from Napoleon III along the way (as a reward for styling her whiskers in the manner of the French leader). She moved her family to the U.S. in 1853 to perform at P.T. Barnum’s American Museum. Her baby son, “Infant Esau” was also part of the act. That year, she was actually sued by a man name William Charr, who publicly claimed that Madame Cloffulia was biologically male. A doctor was called in; the suit was dropped.
For everything you need to know about Bearded ladies visit Beardedwomen.wordpress.com.
Source + Images: Travalanche
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