Under The Knife, Episode 7 – Medieval Urine Wheels
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lf90Kop7Cz4?rel=0] In Episode 7 of Under The Knife, I discuss how a pot of pee used to be a crucial diagnostic tool in the past. Learn all about piss prophets and medieval urine wheels! If you enjoy the series, please consider becoming a patron of our project by clicking here. And don’t forget to subscribe […]
The Chimp & The Surgeon: A History of Heart Transplants
Today isn’t just Valentine’s Day. It’s also the end of Congenital Heart Defects Awareness Week. With that in mind, here’s a short piece on the history of heart transplants. When Boyd Rush, aged 68, was admitted to the University of Mississippi Medical Center on 23 January 1964, Dr James Hardy [below] was waiting for him. […]
Under The Knife, Episode 6 – Bodysnatchers vs Vampires
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYwbh0WyhCc?rel=0] In Episode 6 of Under The Knife, I take on an internet myth involving iron cages, old graveyards, and the undead. Check out our new video on the history of mortsafes in ‘Bodysnatchers vs Vampires’! If you enjoy the series, please consider becoming a patron of our project by clicking here. And don’t forget […]
Memento Mori : A Photographic Journey into the World of the Dead
The last time I saw Paul Koudounaris, he was sitting, cross-legged, atop a small table in front of an old medieval church. He was regaling an audience with stories of demon cats, using language that was as colourful as the clothes he had donned. One of his slides featured a rendering of Da Vinci’s Last […]
Under The Knife, Episode 5 – Human Skin Books
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHKqBaAmzfU?rel=0] In Episode 5 of Under The Knife, I discuss the dark history behind anthropodermic bibliopegy, or binding books with human skin. Why was it done? And how exactly did tanners use human skin to create covers in the past? If you enjoy our series, please consider becoming a patron of our project by clicking […]
Holding a Book Bound in Human Skin
It is hot and muggy in the upstairs gallery of Surgeons’ Hall in Edinburgh. I walk past shelves upon shelves of jars that contain 18th-century specimens suspended in liquid: an amputated arm here, a cancerous bowel there. Compared with the lower level of the museum, it is eerily quiet up here. This section is not […]
Death is All Around Us: The Plague Pits of London
If you walk down Victoria Street in London on a beautiful, sunny afternoon, you’ll find dozens of picnickers sitting in Christchurch Gardens. Some will be suited up in jackets and ties, clutching briefcases in one hand and local supermarket sandwiches in another. Others will be tourists taking a moment to rest their wary bones before […]
Under The Knife – Episode 2: The Plague Doctor
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Per1onjC1ug?list=UU3cjfHkbc-xaExDZf9E98-A] In the 2nd Episode of Under The Knife, I discuss the history of bubonic plague and that notorious beaked mask that has come to symbolize one of the world’s most terrifying diseases. Alex Anstey, Adrian Teal and I have worked hard on this video – we hope you like it! If you enjoy Under The […]
1 Million Hits!
I’m thrilled to announce that The Chirurgeon’s Apprentice has just surpassed 1 million hits. Wow, what a journey it’s been! I’m constantly surprised by the interest this site generates each and every year, and am deeply grateful to you, my readers, for your continued love of medical history. In honour of this milestone, I’ve put together some […]
Ten Terrifying Knives from Medical History
I’m excited to announce that I’ve just finished filming the first episode of my new YouTube series, Under The Knife, and will be releasing it very soon (please subscribe to my channel for video updates). Unsurprisingly, that got me thinking about, well, knives. Here’s a list of some rather terrifying knives from our medical past. VALENTIN […]