Tag Archives: intersex

32 Centuries Together: The Hasanlu Lovers

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Two skeletons close together; th eone on the left is on its side, mouth and chin snuggled into the neck of the one on the right, lying on its back.

Debbie says:

Last month I came across this picture of the Hasanlu Lovers, two skeletons buried somewhere around 800 BC and excavated in 1973 in the West Azerbaijan province of Iran. The skeleton on the right, on his back, is indisputably male. The skeleton on the left, on his side, was originally considered to be female, despite a somewhat more female-shaped pelvis, and a male-shaped head. The video below makes a strong case that the pelvis may not be as female as originally analyzed and raises the oh-so-common question of whether the original identification was heterosexually biased. More recently, DNA testing has confirmed that both skeletons are, at the very least, genotypically male–i.e., they have XY chromosomes.

The Hasanlu lovers almost certainly died together when the citadel they were in was stormed. Their position has been termed “the oldest kiss in history.” I find it especially pleasing that this kiss was almost certainly between two men — though it’s also possible to think of the person on the left as what we now call “intersex,” which would perhaps be even more pleasing.

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“My Doctors Always Told Me There Was Nobody Like Me”: What It’s Like to Be Intersex

Debbie says:

I’ve been less than diligent about my regular internet reading for the past couple of weeks, so I don’t have enough for a links post. But here’s one awesome thing I found while trawling for links:

Intersexuality is more discussed than it used to be, but as these young people make clear, it still isn’t handled at all well in the big world.

I especially appreciated a few things about the video. Starting off with “raise your hand if you have testes” drops the viewer into the heart of the matter in the first moments, allowing these four young intersex people to pack a great deal of value into three minutes.

I like that they all provide their own identities. I like the way they distinguish (fairly clearly) between intersexual and transgender, while the video also demonstrates the commonalities between intersexuality and variations away from the gender binary. And–no surprise!–I really like the messages to other intersexuals, especially “Your body is beautiful. You’re beautiful.”

Pulling off an introduction to intersexuality which is well-designed for intersexuals, for non-intersexual people who know a fair amount, and non-intersexual people who come in knowing nothing about the subject is remarkable. Kudos to Susan, Alex, Emily, and Saifa for their remarkable work! The Intersex Youth Advocacy Group is clearly a great resource.