The Parisian Expositions universelles of the nineteenth century were massive showcases for the latest in scientific advances and modern thinking. The Exposition of 1878 featured an exhibit organized by the Anthropological Society of Paris and endorsed by the newly republican administration. The exhibit aimed to educate the public in secular material determinism – to promulgate the concepts of human evolution from apes and behaviour governed by physiology. The anthropological exhibit drew criticism, unsurprisingly, from a certain section of the Catholic community, which was outraged by the messages of the Anthropological Society. This article seeks to add an illuminating episode to the history of France’s late nineteenth-century culture wars by exploring the negative reactions of some Catholic commentators to a manifestation of anti-clerical, materialist modernity.
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