Anesthetics--Administration--Equipment and supplies
Anesthesiology--Apparatus and instruments
Used to administer ether (anesthesia) during surgery; metal body with stand, hard rubber mask, and rubber tubing in a wooden box with a bottom drawer.
Ombrédanne, Louis (Louis Marie Arsène), 1871-1956
Robert L. Brown History of Medicine Collection
State University of New York at Buffalo. University Libraries
Aspiration and aspirators—Equipment and supplies
Used to draw off gases and fluids from various parts of the body
Set includes exhausting syringe, stop cock, stopper, Trocars and cannulae contained in purple-lined black wooden case.
Used to hold whiskey alcohol for medicinal purposes
Amber glass bottle with a wooden stopper at the top opening. Label on both sides
one side details the company name and logo
the other side details from Herbert N. Hill, Ph.D. "Gentleman:- I have carefully examined the sample of MAY BROOK WHISKEY, A BLEND submitted for analysis and find the same to be free from fusel oil or other deterious substance. Respectfully, [signed Herbert N. Hill].
Prescription for whiskey during Prohibition
Used to obtain whiskey for medicinal purposes during Prohibition
Paper, filled-out prescription for whiskey in a wooden and glass frame.
Teeth--Extraction--Equipment and supplies
Long steel shaft with two attached arms that extend and rotate to multiple positions depending on the desires of the doctor.
Vagina--Examination--Equipment and supplies
Obstetrical and Gynecological Instruments
Single piece of ivory that has a metal handle. The ivory tube starts at the handle at 4.5 cm and the diameter decreases to 3.5 cm. Used in gynecological examinations
Used to magnify and examine items such as cells too small to be seen otherwise
Horseshoe base, black microscope with brass knobs in case. Bausch & Lomb Opticals
Spencer Lens Co. (Buffalo, N.Y.) Patent number 45754.
Used by people that are hard-of-hearing to amplify surrounding noises
Brass ear trumpet with an ivory earpiece and a metal plate of the front stating "Hawksley London".
Brass "Jones" improved compound monocular microscope
Brass, monocular, compound microscope with a detachable and moveable lens attached to the stage.
Powell & Lealand "No. 1" Stand Microscope
Image 101-1665 (Cropped from Image 101-1498)
Used for viewing small organisms not visible to the naked eye
Metal microscope, which is taller and heavier than most microscopes. Manufactured in 1884, it represents perhaps the height of microscope design and craftmanship in England.
Gas tube that has a tin anode and a cup-shaped cathode.
Brass, binocular, compound microscope. The stage is 14 cm in diameter with the eyepiece extending 3 cm. Contained in a wooden case.
Solid silver implement for amputee by Aubry
Amputees--Rehabilitation--Equipment and supplies
Solid silver implement that resembles a fork except the head extends to a horizontal position revealing another fork-like structure.
Glass, oval shaped bottle with an opening at the top and an opening in the larger chamber.
Used to collect the expectorate from tuberculosis patients
German sputum flask for English consumption (tuberculosis). Blue, glass container that has an opening on the top and the bottom. The openings both have silver caps. The top flips opens while the bottom cap screws on and off.
Brass box with a sprung-hinge top. The bottom of the cup has no bottom and there is a small handle on the side. Missing disposable waxed paper liner.
Respiratory therapy--Equipment and supplies
Used to assist patients in the inhalation of medication to treat asthmatic symptoms
Metal instrument used to help asthmatic patients inhale medication. Metal plate on the front of the instrument says :Dr SIEGELS PATENT 1864 Npo 1012 SOLE MANUFACTURER KROHNE & SESEMANN LONDON". Came inside a small case with an extra glass tube and a piece of rope.
Blood pressure--Measurement--Equipment and supplies
Four tools made of silver, steel, brass and cork.
Used to measure the quality of the mother's milk
Metal handle, screw and expanding metal tube.
Drainage, Surgical--Equipment and supplies
Ivory handle with a silver needle and an ivory cap to cover the needle. The top of this delicately carved piece unscrews to reveal a silver cannula sheath which is inserted over the central needle. The ivory body of the trocar is marked with the number "2".
Leather encased Victorian pump enema with a japanned-metal well and brass and ivory fittings. Marked on the well-cover "M. SALT AND SON, 21 HULL ST. BIRMINGHAM, and TRUSS MAKERS TO THE HOSPITAL".
Used for shaping and correcting the nose (quackery)
Pamphlet that describes the nosepiece and what it does for the patients nose. Front and Back Cover of Pamphlet: M. Trilety, "Pioneer Noseshaping Specialist", Binghamton, NY.
Used to comb the hair of an individual that has been infected with lice
Very rare 19th century lice comb in a cranberry-scoop form with a wooden handle. The fine, metal teeth meticulously gather the lice from the hair into the chamber. The chamber then opens from the bottom so that the lice can be removed from the comb.
Alternative medicine--Equipment and supplies
Complementary Therapies--instrumentation
Used to prevent diseases of the chest and lung through a "Voltaic Galvanic Principle".
A pink cloth vest with 20 metal buttons on the front and another 20 buttons on the back side of the vest. Used to place over the back and chest area. One shoulder has a tie to adjust to the size of the patient. Reportedly, the protective electrical current was activated via the secretions of the body as one came into contact with the metal discs of the device.
Electric Appliance Co. (Burlington, Kan.)
Eye--Refractive errors--Equipment and supplies
Used to detect refractive errors of the eye
American instrument resembling a telescope made for ophthalmologic use.
Used to prevent uterine prolapse uterus. The lower part of the pessary would be extra-vaginal and this would have been held in place with a leather strap
Cream-colored, small pillar-like instrument. The top, round piece has holes through it and the base is an oval shape.
Used in surgical procedures by plastic surgeons and dermatologists
Metal forceps, which resemble scissors, with a a small instrument above the cisor portion, which is used to hold the skin.
Phimosis--Surgery--Equipment and supplies
Used in surgery to correct phimosis (tightness of the foreskin of the penis)
E. B. Foote Sr.'s 1881 Patent. Center piece screws into the center chamber, which opens the attached metal appendages to dilate.
Foote, Edward B. (Edward Bliss), 1829-1906
Used for teaching sign language to children
Small ceramic cup that has the English alphabet in sign language encompassing the outside of the cup.
Used in teaching anatomy of the human foot
Model of a human left foot used to show the muscles, arteries, veins, nerves, and the bones within it. Numerous compartments are detachable and held in place with brass hooks. The various sections show the muscles, arteries, veins, nerves, and bones in the foot.
Auzoux, Louis Thomas Jérôme, 1797-1880
Used for instruction on human brain anatomy
A pink, life-size model of a human brain atop a white base. The different section of the brain detach from each other to reveal the insides of the brain and more sections.
Anatomical model of torso with removable parts
Colorful, anatomical model of the human torso. The center of the torso is filled with removable parts such as the liver, stomach and large intestine.
Brass, monocular, compound microscope in wooden case. The stage is 8.5 cm with the eyepiece extending 4-5 cm.
Snakeskin-covered book with each page displaying different steel needles used by surgeons.
Diagnostic imaging--Equipment and supplies
Used to view cards with images of diseases in 3-dimension
An image of a disease is held at the end of a long, wooden handle. One the other end of the long, wooden handle is a metal viewer, which a person can look through to see the image.
High quality and unusual brass pill press engraved "Patent Richard Simon Nottingham" and numbered 251 on both the handle and the head. An intricate mechanism with a hinged lid allows the pills to be pressed into a template. The pill "dough" would then be cut by means of the attached rotating knife and then removed on an early bakelite perforated plate.
Long glass tube that is curled into figure-eights and has a yellow, small, circular glass chamber after each figure-eight. Each end has a larger, oval-shaped glass chamber.
Used in electrosurgery in two principle modes: desiccation and fulguration
Black, plastic main instrument with two rubber cords extending from it
one leads to the plug for an electrical outlet while the other leads to the foot pump. A third rubber cord attachment is for the needle.
Buck's drill for perforating the mastoid process
Mastoid process--Surgery-- Equipment and supplies
Two separate pieces. One item is a short and skinny silver tool. The other is the same except for the large, ivory handle that is attached. On the back of the handle an inscription states "TIEMANN&Co".
Buck, Albert H. (Albert Henry), 1842-1922
Chartroule tuberculosis treatment device
Tuberculosis--Treatment--Equipment and supplies
Metal stand holding a glass an ivory structure. The ivory are used as fitting and the glass is used to hold the medicine and also where the patient inhales the medicine for their treatment.
Reginald Southey was an English physician and the fifth son of the original inventor, Dr. Henry Herbert Southey
Used to drain fluid from the body after surgery
Contains the needle, tool, a cap for the needle and four silver, perforated cannulae. Inserted in the body for drainage purposes.
Long, tin wire with serated edges with a small silver handle at each end.
Used on arteries and small blood vessels during surgery
A rare and high quality Assalini forceps made from steel, blued steel, and with a cross-hatched ivory handle.
Tactile sensors--Measurement--Equipment and supplies
Used to measure sensation upon the skin and thus to determine whether the condition of tactile sensibility is normal or altered
Two silver, thin shafts that are joined together by a hinge where the instrument can expand. The brass measuring device is attached to one silver shaft, which is used to determine "the degree of sensation".
Whittemore's 1866 patent mechanical vaccinator
Small metal instrument with a place for the doctor's finger and a lever to inject the vaccine into a patient. Inscription says "Made By Codman & Shurtleff Boston" on the left side. the right side says "Whittlemore's Patent Feb 21, 1866".
Bone conduction--Testing--Equipment and supplies
Several different pieces form this instrument which is contained in a small case lined with blue velvet and purple silk. The tools are made of steel while the handles are made of ivory.
Used for beating one's nerves back to normal function
Wooden handle attached to a long piece of softened leather. Handle says "Boston Nerve Beater". "PAT APLD V03"?
Hemorrhoids--Surgery--Equipment and supplies
Used to compress hemorrhoids during removal
Silver clamp resembling scissors with ivory on the cisor portion of the clamp.
Used to hold leeches for application to patient
Dark, cobalt blue jar with a characteristically everted lip and an open pontil.
Uses a screw mechanism to dilate the cervix
The set consists of five graduated dilators which are attached by a locking mechanism to an introducer. In Nickel-plated in an embossed leather case, lined with blue velvet and silk and marked :Mayer & Meltzer 71 Great Portland St. W".
Two silver inserts, one for each ear. Case has a tag that states "THE NATURTON COMPANY 83 PALL MALL, LONDON, S.W.I." Patent number on each ear piece reads "PATENT 426246".
Pulse--Measurement--Equipment and supplies
Used to record the pulse pressure at the wrist
Metal instrument with wires, knobs and a short strap attached. A sensitive manometer sits on the radial pulse and is amplified by means of a weighted pulley. A clockwork mechanism turns a roller which winds recording paper under the needle to record a trace.
Dudgeon, R. E. (Robert Ellis), 1820-1904
An intra-cervical device used to prevent conception
Small, gold instrument with a spring connecting the circular head to the thin, arched legs.
Lithotomy instruments (gorgeret and forceps) and 1 instrument for hernia surgery
Kidneys--Calculi--Surgery--Equipment and supplies
Kidney Calculi--surgery--instrumentation
Three metal medical instruments: the first was used to cut, the second is a combination of forceps and scissors, and the third recalls the shape of a cross.
Used to teach dental students the diseases of the teeth
Wooden box, with a glass cover, which encases 25 wax models of different "Diseases of the Teeth", complete with tags to explain each tooth.
Used to provide support for a child's right tibia and fibula, and for a child's left ankle
Veneered splints patented in 1894 and manufactured by Stoddart Brothers, Buffalo, NY. The splints were made for a child's right tibia and fibula, and for a child's left ankle. Description on the inside of each splint states, "These Splints are stronger, lighter and better than any other
require very little padding, will not warp, are aseptic, waterproff, comfortable
and though so light that they are no burden to the patient are so strong that they meet every requirement as to strength. By heating they can be bent to fit any part, and they retain shape when cool."
Long metal shaft inside a glass tube which ends inside a large, circular glass chamber. Two small, glass extensions from the large, circular glass chamber. The glass tube continues through the top of the large, circular glass chamber. Inscription" TUNGSTEN TARGET MADE IN BOSTON BY MACALASTER, WIGGIN CO. Pat. 594036.
Instrument constructed from ebony and silver and is comprised of a cylinder hinged in two halves, a needle and a cover. After restoring the hernia the apparatus was inserted and the handle then removed, leaving the cover in place for 6-8 days to produce adhesions which would seal off the hernia. Which "By the most earnest advocates have been considered applicable to the to the smallest most recent and least troublesome hernias" their value being otherwise "denied or seriously questioned."
John Mappin (Firm : Birmingham, England)
Used to hold engorged tonsils in place during a tonsillectomy
The ends of the forceps are covered in hand-stitched absorbent cotton pads. The number "15" is visible on the instrument. They would be placed in an open position in the mouth and slowly closed over the tonsil to be removed. This prevented tonsillar material falling in the back of the throat causing obstruction or inhalation. Compression also reduced bleeding.
Vibration--Diagnostic use--Equipment and supplies
Vibration--diagnostic use--instrumentation
Used to test hearing and vibration sense.
Five, metal tuning forks in a purple-lined, wooden case. One tuning fork has "WREGG INC., GERMANY" engraved on the handle. Used at the Buffalo Eye & Ear Hospital and the Wettlaufer Clinic.
Used to clamp arteries placed near bone depressions
Metal handle with one large, cloth pad and a smaller, cloth pad.
Used to improve vision . Sliding or hinged extensions were added later in the century.
Small, round, metal frames with loops at the end of each arms. Glass in each frame. Metal is oxidizing.
A surgical kit with more than twenty instruments. Case is made of a lower part with larger tools and two inserts with smaller tools. Wooden case with purple velvet.
French Clyster 3 pieces: wooden plunger-23 cm., metal tube-5 cm in diameter and metal end piece.
Used to pack or condense filling material in a cavity
Wooden case with red silk lining and 5 tools with different ivory tips all with black wooden handles.
Used to perform various procedures on the teeth
Eight, ivory-handled tools. angle-ended, groomed (large handle) 13.5 cm
bent shaft, diamond-shaped end (tip broken) 15.5 cm
straight shaft, triangular blade (collar missing) 15 cm
straight shaft, oblong blade, notched 14 cm
Used to open the mouth during dental work, or when the mouth cannot open naturally because of forward dislocation of the jaw joint's intraarticular cartilage pad
Nickel-plated steel instrument with ridges along each side to allow the dentist to gradually open the patients' mouth wider.
Double-bladed spine saw with inlaid ebony handle
Silver saw with ebony handle used to cut sections through the spinal cord. The width of the sections could be varied with the screw and nut mechanism.
Pewter case with a "door" with air holes that can open and close to reveal the leeches.
Chest--Examination--Equipment and supplies
Used to listen to the heart by tapping on the chest in conjunction with a pleximeter
Has a flexible whalebone handle with a one-ounce metal head.
Used to locate thoracic lesions by percussion Auenbrugger
Ebony with notches for measurement and ornately-decorated silver handles on either side for easy handling. Leopold Auenbrugger, who reinvented percussion as a diagnostic technique, employed a special instrument called a pleximeter although later most American physicians preferred to use their index fingers to percuss their patients. The pleximeter was held on the skin, and tapped with the hammer (percussor).
Tool set with more than ten tools used for post-mortem examinations encased in a pink velvet and wooden case.
Closed: 34.5 x 14 x 6 cm Open: 34.5 x 29 x 3 cm
Used to listen to the unborn baby's heartbeat
Black, hour-glass shaped instrument that is hollow in order for the doctor to hear the heartbeat of the fetus.
one end the has jagged edges and extends to fit the tooth to be extracted.
Edgar R. McGuire Historical Medical Instrument Fund
Long, thin glass tube that resembles a small pipet.
Used to apply skull traction during surgery
Metal instrument with ebony handles that adjust to fit the clamp around the skull. The clamp has teeth on either side to secure the instrument to the skull.
A long, glass and metal glass tube resembling a gun because of the short tube that extends from the long, main glass tube.
Thick, glass tube with yellow, spiked, oval-shaped glass compartments inside the main chamber. Both ends are made of circular glass chambers and one has a small, glass extension.
Used to cut ribs and open the thoracic cavity during autopsy
Steel mechanical-action curved shears with a locking clasp at the back of the handles.
Gonorrhea--Treatment--Equipment and supplies
Early treament of gonorrhea included the use of silver nitrate and mercury compounds
Used as a topical treatment for gonorrhea
Three gauze bags with cotton strings in cardboard box enclosed in a case/frame with red lining.
Bladder--Examination--Equipment and supplies
Ureters--Diseases--Diagnosis--Equipment and supplies
Used to examine the interior of the urinary bladder and ureter
Polished chrome instruments with ebony handles. Complete set fitted in wooden box.
Polished chrome blade with pressed horn handle.
Obstetrical and gynecological instruments
Body temperature--Measurement--Equipment and supplies
Curved glass thermometer with metal mouthpiece attached to ivory scale in red-lined wooden box.
Used for teaching/demonstration of the anatomy of the human heart
Plaster model heart in two parts painted on wooden stand.
Set includes 1 printed Gemrig gauge bougies and 12 sounds. Set belonged to Dr. Frederick Tice of Virginia.
Used to stretch/dilate the urethra to locate strictures
Twelve curved steel urethral dilator sounds contained in a red lined wooden case.
Used for teaching/demonstration of the anatomy of the human brain
Plaster model brain in three parts hand-painted on wooden stand.
Used for amputation, autopsy and dissection
Polished steel with brass ring and ivory handle.
Ear--Examination--Equipment and supplies
Used for examination of the ears with natural light
Silver plated with three specula in original fitted blue velvet and black leather box.
Medical Supply Association (Edinbugh, Scotland)
Curved silver with hallmarks for London Silversmith H.P. and spring mechanism on top that releases inner blade.
Used for teaching/demonstration of anatomy of the human ear
Painted and numbered papier mache model of ear on metal stand.
Urinary catheterization--Equipment and supplies
Urinary Catheterization--instrumentation
Used to drain and collect urine from the bladder
Three Silver urinary catheters contained in a shaped leather velvet-lined case.
Medicine--Storage--Equipment and supplies
Homeopathy--Materia medica and therapeutics—Equipment and supplies
Used to store homeopathic drug preparations
Polished nagging, maple and pine woods, standing on bun feet with ceramic handles on door and 10 drawers. Drug names are written in German on the cabinet.
Adjustable brass lamp on stand with rounded bottom
cross-bar with chin rest, mirror and cylindrical eye-piece with wood handle and magnifying lens.
Eye--Care and hygiene--Equipment and supplies
Brass with glass reservoir, pump, adjustable nozzle, eye screen and catch basin on a tripod base
Used for teaching/demonstration of the anatomy of the human eye
Papier mache eye on stand with moveable parts.
Auzoux, Louis Thomas Je?ro?me, 1797-1880
Hard rubber head fixed in a metal ring with ebony and metal handle.