Left above knee peg leg made from leather and wood in Stalag VIIIB/344 (Lamsdorf) during World War II

Left above knee peg leg made from leather and wood in Stalag Left above knee peg leg made from leather and wood in Stalag

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Left above knee peg leg made from leather and wood in Stalag
Science Museum Group
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

Left above knee peg leg made from leather and wood in Stalag
Science Museum Group Collection
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

Left above knee peg leg made from leather and wood in Stalag VIIIB/344 (Lamsdorf) during World War II by Arthur Weston OBE, a Prisoner of War who made a number of temporary prostheses during his captivity. Made in 1940.

During his imprisonment in the German prisoner of war camp Stalag VIIIB, in Lamsdorf, Poland, Arthur Weston established a limb-making workshop that made a number of artificial limbs for amputee prisoners.

Made from wood and secured to the thigh and waist by leather straps, this leg was made for a prisoner who had lost his leg above the knee. The materials for the leg would have been found around the camp. As the leg does not bend, the wearer would also have needed crutches to move around.

Details

Category:
Orthopaedics
Object Number:
1999-430
Materials:
wood, leather, iron, cotton (textile), rubber and wool
Measurements:
overall: 75 mm x 980 mm x 270 mm,
type:
artificial leg
credit:
Richmond Twickenham and Roehampton Healthcare NHS Trust