Photo Gallery 'Eugenically Charged' Science
Already years before the Nazis came to power, German scientists were propagating theories about blood purity. Though this obsession led to bizarre and dangerous theories about superiority and personality traits, it also led to medical breakthroughs.
Hirszfeld and other blood researchers of the era considered it self-evident that the various blood groups were indications of inferior or superior racial characteristics. These scientists were also convinced that personality traits could be inferred from the blood.
The true origin of blood groups remains a mystery to this day. What can be said for certain is that type O occurs more frequently in the Americas and Africa, while type B is more common in Asia and type A in Europe.
Foto: DER SPIEGEL
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