Earthenware bleeding bowl

Earthenware bleeding bowl

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Science Museum Group Collection
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

Earthenware bleeding bowl, glazed, graduated, English, 18th or 19th century

Bleeding bowls were used during bloodletting – a practice once carried out to treat a wide range of diseases and medical conditions. They were used to catch the blood from an opened vein. This example has a scale marked in fluid ounces inside the bowl to measure how much blood had been let out of the patient.

Details

Category:
Therapeutics
Collection:
Sir Henry Wellcome's Museum Collection
Object Number:
A626460
Materials:
earthenware (glazed)
Measurements:
overall: 102 mm 138 mm, 0.44 kg
type:
bleeding bowl
credit:
Loan, Wellcome Trust