“40 Days Without Food. The controversial public fast of Dr. Henry S. Tanner in New York, 1880”

In the late nineteenth century, hunger artists’ performances attracted considerable interest in Europe and America. Public fasting for 30-40 days progressively became a commodity in the urban marketplace which could be exploited for amusement and profit but also for scientific study. In my lecture, I will approach the controversial fast of Dr Henry S. Tanner (1831-1918).

Presented by Agustí Nieto-Galan, Professor of History of Science at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona