Introduction 13
1. Paleolithic Pyrenean Woman's Hands 19
… and the digital revolution in cave art, or the fine art of hand stenciling (50,000-10,000 BCE)
2. Queen Hatshepsut's Beard 27
… and monumental masculinity, or the difficulties of being a female ruler in ancient times (FL. 1450 BCE)
3. Zeus's Penis 33
… and ancient Greek aesthetics and philosophy through genitalia, or small is better (510-323 BCE-Classical Greek Period)
4. Cleopatra's Nose 43
… and why size matters, or big noses and bigger empires (69-30 BCE)
5. Triêu Thi Trinh's Breasts 51
… and how the patriarchy tried to keep a good woman down, or what's maybe missing in history books (225-248)
6. St. Cuthbert's Fingernails 59
… and how the Catholic Church used pieces of saints to spread their influence-and make an arm and a leg in the process (634-687)
7. Lady XOC's Tongue 65
… and the politics of body piercing, or how bloodletting kept civilization alive (FL. 700)
8. Al-Ma'Arri's Eyes 73
… and a blind man's farseeing vision, or medieval modernity (973-1057)
9. Timur's (Tamerlane's) Leg 81
… and disability, nicknames, and conquest (1336-1405)
10. Richard III's Back 89
… and how a historical public-relations image campaign-later aided by a certain big-name playwright-created a villain (1452-1485)
11. Martin Luther's Bowels 97
… and how-possibly-a religious revolution was spawned in a not-so-spiritual place (1483-1546)
12. Anne Boleyn's Heart 105
… and the fad of being buried in more than one place (c.1501-1536)
13. Charles I's and Oliver Cromwell's Heads 113
… and two competing ideas of government-and the rise of constitutional monarchy (1600-1649 and 1559-1658)
14. Charles II of Spain's Jaw 121
… and the unfortunate repercussions of keeping things all in the family (1661-1700)
15. George Washington's (Fake) Teeth 129
… and their dirty little secret (1732-1799)
16. Benedict Arnold's Leg 137
… and how revolution lost its luster and converted a hero to a traitor (1741-1801)
17. Marat's Skin 145
… and how a debilitating condition led to the birth of propaganda art (1743-1793)
18. Lord Byron's Foot 153
… and the birth of the modern-day celebrity (1788-1824)
19. Harriet Tubman's Brain 161
… and how an act of violence against an enslaved person contributed to the eventual downfall of slavery (C.1822-1913)
20. The Bell Family's Ears 169
… and an obsession with hearing-and not hearing, or a quest for visible speech and what it gave the world (1847-1922)
21. Kaiser Wilhelm's Arm 177
… from breech birth to bombs (1859-1941)
22. Mary Mallon's Gallbladder 185
… and lurking bacteria, spreading disease, peaches and cream … and contact tracing? (1869-1938)
23. Lenin's Skin 193
… and its role in a quasi-religious cult in a nonreligious state (1870-1924)
24. Qiu Jin's Feet 201
… and how binding spawned the feminist fight for freedom (1875-1907)
25. Einstein's Brain 207
… and a tale of cider boxes, mason jars, and, possibly, the biological basis of genius (1879-1955)
26. Frida Kahlo's Spine 215
… and the positive side of being bedridden for nine months (1907-1954)
27. Alan Shephard's Bladder 223
… and the prosaic but important problems of space elimination (1923-1998)
Resources 231
Acknowledgments 253
About the Authors 255