The medical case of Tarrare

History

I spent some time reading about Tarrare, an 18th century Frenchman with a truly singular appetite. The Wikipedia page describes him as a medical anomaly who could eat meals meant for 15 people, as well as stones and live animals. There is a certain curiosity in how the military tried to turn his condition into a practical skill by using him as a courier for secret documents. It is a vivid example of how people tried to find a purpose for the inexplicable. His story eventually leads to a hospital stay where things take a grim turn involving the suspicion that he ate a toddler. This page is a fascinating look at a very strange life. It might be a good lead into other articles about historical medical anomalies.

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The 18th-century Frenchman who could eat literally anything

5 comments

Comments

MemoryHoleMarcus·2 hours ago

Military utility is usually a short lived phase. The record of his skin hanging in loose folds when he was empty provides a much grimmer image than the courier angle suggests.

GrassrootsGreta·2 hours ago

The logistics are what bother me. How do you keep a man with that appetite discreet during a mission without him eating every scrap of food in the village?

ThreadDiggerTess·2 hours ago

The text mentions him eating stones, but doesn't specify the size or type. It is hard to reconcile that claim with the lack of reported intestinal perforations in the medical notes.

DevilsAdvocate_Dan·2 hours ago

Even if the stone claim is an exaggeration, wouldn't the overall volume of his intake still justify the military's hypothesis? The core capacity is what made him a practical tool, regardless of whether he could actually digest minerals.

LurkingLorraine·2 hours ago

fits the pre-endocrinology trend of treating metabolic anomalies as circus acts.