HEREIN LIES WHAT THE MOUNTAIN-LIONS LEFT OF MUCHABONGO. GONE TO THE HAPPY HUNTING GROUNDS, WHERE GAME IS EVER PLENTIFUL, AND THE WHITE MAN NEVER INTRUDES.

Nineteenth-century carnivals, dime museums, and freak shows often offered grotesque waxworks alongside preserved body parts and skeletons. This modeled head of Muchabongo may have been part of a Coney Island exhibit that was bought from Phineas Taylor Barnum, founder of the American Museum and “The Greatest Show on Earth.” Objects like this, exhibited at carnivals and international expositions, emphasized racial stereotypes by portraying “exotic” people as curiosities and freaks.