Artificial right leg, Paris, France, 1946

"Stabilax" right above knee prosthesis. There is a two-piece shin and a 4-bar linkage in the knee. Only when there is pressure on the toe does the knee flex. When the heel strikes the ground the knee is locked. Made by Juenin Hanger, Paris 1946. (Weight: 6.75 lbs 3 kg).

The knee of this prosthetic leg locks when the heel strikes the ground and will only bend when there is pressure on the toes. This was an attempt to mimic the natural action of a person walking. The leg was made for a patient who had his right leg amputated above the knee as a result of service during the Second World War.

Juenin Hanger, who invented and made this metal and leather prosthetic leg, named it ‘Stabilax’. A date, “13-5-46”, is punched into the thigh, suggesting that his invention was post-Second World War. The large numbers of amputations during wartime usually leads to new developments in prostheses.