Such a gut-wrenching story! Until very (and I mean very) recent times, children were considered more or less a property of their parents, and concerned neighbors or relatives could not really do much to prevent or stop abuse from happening, even when they wanted to.

The fact that children are people, and not semi-sentient appendages of their parents, is a very modern concept. Vicious beatings were the norm, even at the hand of what we’d consider normal, loving mothers and fathers. Unfortunately, cases like poor Aurore’s are not unheard of even today.

The work you did on that colorized photograph is nothing short of amazing, by the way! I’d love to know the process you used — it must’ve taken days!