The pelvises of Christine Borland
Christine Borland’s ‘Set Conversation Pieces’ (1998) combine obstetric pelvises with 18th century English china.
Categories: Contemporary Art, Curiosities • Tags: body, medicine, porcelain, sculpture
Tag: medicine
Magic hat covered in decayed teeth
A 19th century hat belonging to an itinerant London street dentist, covered with 88 decayed teeth from his former patients
Categories: Curiosities, Museums, Unsettling Things • Tags: curiosities, fashion, history, magic, medicine, teeth
Syrup jars for earthworm oil
A collection of apothecary jars for storing oil of earthworms, plus recipes for making your own disgusting worm syrup
Categories: Curiosities, history, Museums • Tags: apothecary, curiosities, drugs, medicine, science, worms
Leeches! Leeches!! Leeches!!!
Leeches have been used for bloodletting for centuries. In fact, they became so popular in the 18th and 19th centuries that they were almost farmed to extinction in Europe. Although falling out of fashion in the later half of the 20th century, their medical use is making a comeback in microsurgery and reconstructive surgery due to the anti-coagulant properties of their secretions, which is useful for reducing blood clots and venous pressure from pooling blood, and for healing skin grafts. […]
Categories: Curiosities, history • Tags: advertisements, ephemera, illustration, images, leeches, medicine, nostalgia, science, unsettling, victorian era
GUEST POST: Mike Crump on Robert Liston and the Spectacle of Surgical Amputation
Today’s post comes from Mike Crump, a brilliant young neuroscientist doing impressive brain research at Oxford (which is far too complicated for my humble art historical mind to fully understand, let alone articulate to you, so I won’t embarrass myself trying). When not discovering awesome brain things, Mike is interested in the dark corners of the history of science and medicine. He’s written a great article for the blog about a ridiculously interesting Victorian surgeon, Robert Liston, who was one […]
Categories: Guest Post, history • Tags: guest post, history, medicine, science, surgeon, victorian era
The Museum of Ridiculously Interesting Things 