At Observatory in Brooklyn

If you're in the neighborhood, Joanna Ebenstein of Morbid Anatomy is hosting Three Unique Medical Museums in Northern Italy tomorrow night. $5 for great entertainment in New York? What a bargain. Go.

The beauty of medical illustration

We have a respectable amount of medical illustrations in various collections and when you see a good one, not only are you given a special behind-the-scenes tour of anatomy, you're witnessing fine art.

One of our posts on Civil War photography was recently featured on the blog The Sterile Eye, and I came across this post that features the incredible work of Jan van Rymsdyk, an 18th century illustrator. Take a look. They're breathtakingly beautiful.

Letter of the day, April 30

Filling out his time card:

[Numbered Correspondence 5185]
Subject: Station & Duty.

War Department,
Surgeon General's Office,
U.S. Army Medical Museum and Library,
Corner 7th and B Streets SW.,
Washington April 30, 1901.

TO THE ADJUTANT GENERAL,
U.S. Army.

General:

I have the honor to report that during the month of April 1901, I have been on duty in the Surgeon General's Office as Curator of the Army Medical Museum in accordance with Par. 2 S.O. No.153, Hdqrs. of the Army, A.G.O., Washington, July 7, 1893.

Very respectfully,
Walter Reed,
Major & Surgeon, U.S. Army,
Curator Army Med. Museum.

One last AAHM special

Another view of William Mayo. Reeve 1331:

AAHM Special, Continued

More photos from our collection. These guys got some medals!

The Bronze Medal of the Interstate Postgraduate Medical Association Of North America presented to William J. Mayo. NCP 1086:

Henry Jacob Bigelow Medal presented to Dr. William J. Mayo. NCP 1085:

The Finlay Congressional Distinguished Service Medal of the Republic of Cuba awarded to Dr. W.J. Mayo in January 1929. NCP 1088:

Cross of Knight Commander of the Royal Order of the Crown of Italy presented to the Mayo brothers. NCP 1089:

Medal of the American Medical Association presented to William James Mayo. NCP 1090:

Distinguished Service Medal awarded to Col. William J. Mayo. NCP 1091:

Medal Presented to Brigadier General W.J. Mayo, Inactive Section, O.R.C., U.S. Army, October 14, 1938, by the Association of Military Surgeons of the United States in Recognition of His Loyal Support of the National Defense Program. [One also awarded to Charles Mayo, NCP 1099.] NCP 1092:

Gold Medal of the National Institute of Social Sciences presented to Dr. William J. Mayo. NCP 1093:

Medal of the Minnesota State Medical Association awarded to William James Mayo. NCP 1094:

Medal of the Minnesota State Medical Association awarded to Charles Horace Mayo. NCP 1095:

Bronze medal of the Interstate Postgraduate Medical Association of North America presented to Dr. Charles Horace Mayo. NCP 1096:

Insignia of Corresponding Foreign Membership in the Mexican Academy Of Surgery, Dr. Charles H. Mayo, June 1936. Insignia of Honorary Membership in the Mexican National Academy Of Medicine, Dr. Charles H. Mayo, January 1932. NCP 1097:

Insignia of Officer of the National Order of the Legion of Honor Of France, awarded to Dr. Charles H. Mayo by the President of the Republic of France October 28, 1925. NCP 1098:

Distinguished Service Medal awarded to Colonel Charles H. Mayo. NCP 1100:

Medal of the American Medical Association awarded to Charles Horace Mayo. NCP 1101:

Medal of Instituto Medico Valenciano presented to Dr. Charles Mayo. NCP 1102:

Unidentified Medal presumably awarded to the Mayo Brothers. NCP 1103:

AAHM special - Mayo pictures

Some of us are at the Mayo Clinic presenting papers for this year's American Associations for the History of Medicine meetings. In honor of our hosts, here's the start of some pictures we have related to the Mayo Brothers.

Major William Mayo, Medical Corps. World War 1. (Reeve 972-2)


The Finlay Congressional Distinguished Service Medal of the Republic of
Cuba awarded to Dr. W.J. Mayo in January 1929. (NCP 1088)

Letter of the Day: April 29 - Census

Eleventh Census of the United States

Department of the Interior,
Census Office,
Washington, D.C., April 29, 1889

Sir:

By direction of the Superintendent of Census, Miss Sara E. Nolan, of the District of Columbia, a computer in this office, will report to you for duty on Wednesday morning, May 1.

Please report Miss Nolan's time to the Superintendent monthly.

Very respectfully,

J.H. Wardle,
Acting Chief Clerk

Dr. John S. Billings
In Charge
Mortality and Vital Statitics, Eleventh Census
City

More "letterhead" from the collection

I'm captivated by the different fonts down the page. Isn't that beautiful?

Higher resolution and a larger size available over on flickr.

Wounded in Action at the Senate this Week

Letter of the Day: April 28 - parasitic worms

Philadelphia
1302 Fillnut St.

April 28, 1886

Dear Dr. Billings,

About a year ago you wrote to me proposing to send to me for identification some specimens of entozoa in the Army Medical Museum. If you will now at your convenience have the collection sent to the following address, at my leisure, I will examine the speciments and in due time report therein.

Sincerely yours,

Joseph Leidy

Address
Prof. Joseph Leidy
Biological Dept University of Pennsylvania
West Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pa

National Hairball Awareness Day

National Hairball Awareness Day

National Hairball Awareness Day

National Hairball Awareness Day

National Hairball Awareness Day

National Hairball Awareness Day

National Hairball Awareness Day

Letter of the Day: April 27

34, 585 (presumably a Smithsonian number)

Washington, April 27, 1874

Dear Doctor.

I send you a letter from a correspondent in Florida, who seems to have struck a vein. Please return this as soon as you have perused it, + let me know whether you can authorise (sic) him to expense any money, say, ten, twenty, or thirty dollars or more, in excavating for the skulls + skeletons of dead Indians.

Very truly yours,
Spencer F. Baird

Dr. Geo. A. Otis
Army Medical Museum,
Washington

(a note written on the letter says ‘no enclosure was rec’d’)

Installed AAOS exhibit at Russell senate office building

From the Museum's press release:

NATIONAL MUSEUM OF HEALTH AND MEDICINE AND UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND, BALTIMORE TO FEATURE 'WOUNDED IN ACTION: AN ART EXHIBITION OF ORTHOPAEDIC ADVANCEMENTS'


Washington, D.C. – March 31, 2010: "Wounded in Action: An Art Exhibition of Orthopaedic Advancements," an exhibit of art works inspired by experiences with the wounds of war, will have its first major installation at the National Museum of Health and Medicine in Washington, D.C. and the University of Maryland Baltimore (UMB), in May 2010, after a one-week exhibition in a United States Senate office building in the nation’s capital. "Wounded in Action" is produced and organized by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), which premiered the exhibition at its annual meeting in New Orleans in March.

"Wounded in Action" celebrates those who have had orthopaedic injuries as a result of serving our country during a time of war. From World War II to Korea to Viet Nam, from the Gulf War, to Afghanistan to Iraq, thousands of uniformed service members have suffered severe musculoskeletal injuries. Their stories are told through the art on display in the installation. The exhibition also recognizes orthopaedic surgeons who, throughout history, have risked their own safety to care for military service members, to save lives and limbs, to advance medical treatments, and to conduct research and learn from war in order to better treat those who sustain orthopaedic trauma.

"Wounded in Action" will see its Washington, D.C. premiere at the Russell Senate Office Building the week of April 26-30, 2010.

In May, the entire juried exhibition will be concurrently installed in two locations in the Baltimore/Washington region: at the NMHM in Washington and at UMB’s Health Sciences/Human Services Library and Southern Management Corporation Campus Center, in downtown Baltimore. Both locations will be open to the public and the exhibition is available free of charge. (See below for specific exhibition information.)

"The intersection of medicine and the humanities is central to this exhibition and we’re honored to partner with AAOS and the University of Maryland, Baltimore in offering the public the opportunity to engage this important show," said Adrianne Noe, Ph.D., Director of the NMHM. "As a medical museum located on a military medical installation, we’re intimately familiar with the present-day consequences of war injuries. And, historically, our collections have played an integral role in the development of new and innovative technologies to improve the quality of life of wounded warriors and their families."

NMHM has a considerable interest in documenting advances in prosthetics and orthopaedic surgery, with hundreds of objects included in the Museum’s Historical Collections. Instruments that document the history of amputation range from Revolutionary War-era amputation knives to Civil War-era surgical kits and modern 20th-century stainless steel amputation saws. A large collection of artificial limbs, dating from the post Civil War era to modern examples, is also in the collection and on display in the Museum’s Civil War medicine and battlefield surgery exhibits. Highlights include a circa 1850 G.W. Yearger Artificial Leg, the first patented artificial limb; two artificial limbs made by American POWs during the World War II; and an Otto Bock C-Leg issued to amputees wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan. The history of total joint arthroplasty is represented by a mock-up of the Jules Pean's artificial shoulder implant of 1890; a collection of joint prosthetics developed by the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City; and the prototype UCI Total Knee.

"Statistics on war injuries are stark and startling – but by telling personal stories of the men and women who have demonstrated extreme courage, endured extreme loss and persevered through a healing process – we hope to truly honor our troops," said AAOS President John J. Callaghan, MD. "We also honor the orthopaedic surgeons and all who serve as military medical caregivers. "Wounded in Action" not only is a collection of artwork, it also is a collection of stories of both pain and renewal."

"As Maryland's public academic healthcare center, UMB is delighted to be partnering with AAOS and the National Museum of Health and Medicine to bring this provocative exhibit to Baltimore," said James L. Hughes, MBA, Vice President, Office of Research and Development at UMB. "By portraying the challenges in repairing war’s assault on the human body and spirit, the artwork will inspire the thousands of healthcare students, clinicians, and researchers at UMB and throughout Greater Baltimore."

Installed AAOS exhibit at Russell senate office building