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Dissected Lobster

This week we continue our theme of comparative anatomy by looking at this dissected lobster. This particular specimen was dissected to learn about its nervous system. Anatomists such as John Barclay collected specimens so they could study similarities between different species. There are two major ideas of comparative anatomy; analogous structures and homologous structures. Analogous structures are similar but appear in different organisms because of the environment they evolve in. For example sharks and whales have the same torpedo shape because of the environment that they lived in. Homologous structures are similar because of a shared ancestry that exists between species. For example, turtles, dolphins and humans all have a humerus bone, but evolution dictates that how they are formed

Frog Skeleton

This week we are looking at the skeletal dissection of a frog. It is part of a collection of comparative anatomy put together by John Struthers (1823-1899), Scottish zoologist and anatomist. At one time, the museum held a whole array of animals, from a tiger skeleton and a dolphin skull, to the pulmonary vein of a whale and the skin of a porcupine fish. Much of what we do have will be featured in the new displays that open in September.

Mid 19th Century Microscope

This object is a microscope from the mid-19th century, made by the R & J Beck Company in London. The lenses of the microscope were made according the formulas of Joseph Jackson Lister, who invented the achromatic lens. Joseph Jackson Lister was the father of Joseph Lister, who is known for spearheading the use of antisepsis in surgery. J.J. Lister was profoundly interested in natural history, but felt that microscopes of the time did not adequately detail the structure of cells of plants and animals. As a result of this he set about constructing and designing a superior achromatic lens, which in turn led to an optical microscope with far better resolution than ever before.

Cathcart Freezing Microtome

This is the Cathcart Freezing Microtome, which is dated 1906, named after Charles Walker Cathcart, Conservator and Curator of the Museum. A microtome is an instrument that allows for specimens, such as tissue samples, to be sliced thinly so that they can be viewed as a slide under the microscope. The most common way of preparing samples traditionally was by embedding the tissue in molten paraffin wax. When it had set, these could then be sliced. This particular microtome used an ether spray to first freeze, and then cut samples.

X-ray of Lord Lister's hand

Our object for this week is an X-ray taken of Lord Joseph Lister’s hand. This particular X-ray was made in November 1896 at King’s College Hospital. The exposure time was said to be two minutes. This image was also taken within 18 months of Wilhelm Röntgen’s discovery of x-rays. Röntgen’s discovery led him to be considered as the father of diagnostic radiology, the medical speciality which uses imaging to diagnose and treat disease seen within the body.

The Edinburgh Stereoscopic Atlas of Anatomy

David Waterston, a lecturer and senior demonstrator in the Department of Anatomy at the University of Edinburgh in the early 1900's, was the author of the Edinburgh Stereoscopic Atlas of Anatomy. It provided realistic 3D impressions of human anatomical dissections, helping students to gain important insights into the structure and spaces of the body. Stereoscopic images consist of sets of two photographs taken from very slightly different perspectives which are then viewed together through a box or hand-held viewer, similar to the one in the image. They contain lenses which create an optical illusion that the brain puts together as a three dimensional image.

Model Head

This cast of a head is our final imaging object this month. Models or casts such as this were used to teach students. An advantage of using models, was that they were more robust than wet specimens, as they could be passed around and handled. This particular model is made of plaster with half the brain exposed. It is mounted with a metal pin on a wooden stand.

Joseph Bell's RCSEd Gown

This month we are looking at objects in the collection associated with Joseph Bell, a fellow of the College more commonly known as the inspiration for Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes. These particular robes belonged to Joseph Bell, the last of the Bell medical dynasty which started with Benjamin Bell in 1771. Joseph Bell was educated at Edinburgh Academy and Edinburgh University where he graduated MD in 1859. He was the first surgeon to give systematic instruction to nurses, the first surgeon to the newly created Department of Surgery in the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in 1887 and was editor of the Edinburgh Medical Journal from 1873 to 1896. He was the College’s Honorary Secretary and Treasurer for eleven years until 1887, when he became President.

Painting of Joseph Bell

This week’s object is a portrait of Joseph Bell. In the portrait, Bell is wearing the robes that featured as last week’s object. This particular portrait of Bell was painted in 1896 by George Fiddes Watt. Bell, like many other 19th century surgeons, started his surgical career as a House Surgeon with James Syme and was his special assistant for five years. After demonstrating in Anatomy under John Goodsir he was appointed as an extra-academical Lecturer in Surgery and then in Clinical Surgery before he became the first surgeon to the newly created Department of Surgery in the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in 1887. Prior to that time most operations on children were carried out in the Royal Infirmary.

Arthur Conan Doyle's Letter

Continuing with our weekly objects, we look at a letter from Arthur Conan Doyle to Joseph Bell. Conan Doyle was a medical graduate of the University of Edinburgh and a medical student of Joseph Bell. Conan Doyle has always credited Bell as the inspiration for his character Sherlock Holmes, which was down to the fine diagnostic ability Bell possessed. In this letter, our current object of the week, Doyle expresses that it is “most certainly to you that I owe Sherlock Holmes”.