Amputation instrument set, Strasbourg, France, 1780-1820

Made:
1780-1820 in Strasbourg
maker:
Lichtenberger
Amputation set, almost complete, steel and ebony instruments Amputation set, almost complete, steel and ebony instruments

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Amputation set, almost complete, steel and ebony instruments
Science Museum Group Collection
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

Amputation set, almost complete, steel and ebony instruments
Science Museum Group
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

Amputation set, almost complete, steel and ebony instruments, in leather case, by Lichtenberger of Strasbourg, c. 1800

The leather case set contains a range of equipment a surgeon would need to perform amputations. These include a number of rather gruesome looking knives and saws to cut through skin, muscle and bone. The instruments are made from steel with ebony handles. Materials such as ebony were difficult to clean and these instruments would very likely have harboured dirt and dangerous micro-organisms. Only later in the century, with the introduction of aseptic surgical procedures, were instruments finally made of materials that could be fully sterilised.

Inside the lid there is a handwritten inventory signed by surgeons of the Military Hospital in Strasbourg, France. This set was probably used during the Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815). Amputations of arms and legs were common and were carried out without anaesthetic. One surgeon of the Napoleonic Wars claimed that at the Battle of Borodino in 1812 he performed two hundred amputations in a single day.

Details

Category:
Surgery
Collection:
Sir Henry Wellcome's Museum Collection
Object Number:
A79278
Materials:
complete, leather, brass (copper, zinc alloy) and felt
Measurements:
overall: 77 mm x 567 mm x 182 mm, 4.32kg
type:
amputation instrument set
credit:
Loan, Wellcome Trust

Parts

Amputation saws

Amputation saws

Amputation saw, steel and ebony(?), by Lichtenberger of Strasbourg, 1780-1820

Measurements:
overall: 25 mm x 510 mm x 130 mm, 0.686 kg
Materials:
steel (metal) and ebony
Object Number:
A79278 Pt1
type:
amputation saws
8 bistouries

8 bistouries

8 bistouries, steel and shell, straight and pointed, by Lichtenberger of Strasbourg, 1780-1820

Materials:
steel (metal) and shell
Object Number:
A79278 Pt2
type:
bistouries
Bistoury, steel and shell

Bistoury, steel and shell

Bistoury, steel and shell, straight and probe-ended by Lichtenberger of Strasbourg, 1780-1820

Materials:
steel (metal) and shell
Object Number:
A79278 Pt3
type:
bistouries
Bistoury, steel and shell

Bistoury, steel and shell

Bistoury, steel and shell, straight and pointed, by Blanc of Paris, 1780-1820

Measurements:
overall: 7 mm x 110 mm x 15 mm, 0.018 kg
Materials:
steel (metal) and shell
Object Number:
A79278 Pt4
type:
bistouries
Five amputation knives

Five amputation knives

Five amputation knives, steel and ebony, by Lichtenberger of Strasbourg, 1780-1820, varying size

Measurements:
overall: 10 mm x 359 mm x 19 mm, 0.098 kg
Materials:
steel (metal) and ebony
Object Number:
A79278 Pt5
type:
amputation knives
Catlin Knife

Catlin Knife

Catlin, steel and ebony, by Lichtenberger of Strasbourg, 1780-1820

Measurements:
overall: 8 mm x 243 mm x 16 mm, 0.042 kg
Materials:
steel and ebony
Object Number:
A79278 Pt6
type:
amputation knives
Dissecting Forceps

Dissecting Forceps

Dissecting forceps, steel, probably French, 1750-1850

Measurements:
overall: 15 mm x 135 mm x 20 mm, 0.048 kg
Materials:
steel (metal)
Object Number:
A79278 Pt7
type:
dissecting forceps
Trocar, steel and ebony in leatherette case

Trocar, steel and ebony in leatherette case

Trocar, steel and ebony in leatherette case, probably French, 1750-1850

Measurements:
overall: 130 mm 25 mm, 0.034 kg
Materials:
steel (metal) , ebony and leatherette
Object Number:
A79278 Pt8
type:
trocars
Trocars

Trocars

Trocar, steel and ebony, in leatherette case, probably French, 1750-1850

Measurements:
overall: 165 mm 22 mm, 0.046 kg
Materials:
steel , ebony and leatherette
Object Number:
A79278 Pt9
type:
trocars
Tourniquet, comprising, two leather pads

Tourniquet, comprising, two leather pads

Tourniquet, comprising, two leather pads, one wooden length, strip of canvas, probably French, 1750-1850

Materials:
leather , wood (unidentified) and canvas
Object Number:
A79278 Pt10
type:
tourniquets
Four curved suture needles in leather case

Four curved suture needles in leather case

Four curved suture needles, in leather case, probably French, 1750-1850

Materials:
steel (metal) and leather
Object Number:
A79278 Pt11
type:
suture needles