Tattoos, Identity, and The Disturbing Fate of 'Monsieur Bonheur'

When Gemma Angel met Monsieur Bonheur, she wasn’t quite sure what to expect. Angel, pursuing her doctorate at the University College London at the time, was studying a collection of hundreds of preserved pieces of tattooed skin from European soldiers, and she was no stranger to the unconventional and the macabre. But her first glimpse of Bonheur, in a private collection in London in 2010, still managed to surprise. “Bonheur was in his library, covered up, just leaning against the wall,” Angel says. “And it was kind of a shock,…

This content is for Member members only.
Log In Register