The Hangman’s Fracture
In 1726, the Frenchman, Cesar de Saussure, witnessed a hanging in London. Later, he recorded the details of the execution for posterity: On the day
Dissecting the Living: Vivisection in Early Modern England
A physiological demonstration with vivisection of a dog. Oil painting by Emile-Edouard Mouchy, 1832. From the Wellcome Library, London. In 1664, Robert Hooke—a pioneering
From the Dissection Room: An 18th-Century Postmortem of Lung Cancer
Portion of Mrs. Adam’s lung showing several round masses of firm white cancerous tissue embedded in apparently healthy pulmonary tissue, 1792. Specimen from the Hunterian Museum of
‘Crying to Heaven for Revenge’: The Bleeding Corpse and its Significance in History
On set filming scene for upcoming documentary on superstitions. Recently, I was asked to appear on a television series for Channel 4 (UK). The show
Drinking Blood and Eating Flesh: Corpse Medicine in Early Modern England
Mumia; Head of a Mummy, used for wound healing and plasters until the end of the 18th century. In order to restore youth to an
From the Dissection Room: Broken Hearts (Myocardial Infarction)
A portion of the left ventricle of a woman’s heart showing the damage caused by myocardial infarction with evidence of superficial pericarditis. It was taken at