This image is released under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 Licence
This image is released under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 Licence
This image is released under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 Licence
Science Museum Group Collection
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum
Ivory anatomical figure of a pregnant female. Top view, whole object, grey background.
Science Museum Group Collection
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum
Science Museum Group
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum
Ivory anatomical figure, a pregnant female, with some removable internal organs, lying on a couch, possibly German, 17th or 18th century
Female ivory anatomical models of this type were popular in the 1600s and 1700s, and were almost always shown as pregnant. In this example the foetus is shown in the uterus in position ready to be born. Carved from ivory, the heart can also be seen – the other internal organs are missing.
Such ivory anatomical figures normally came in male and female pairs. The organs are not very detailed so it is unlikely that the model was used for medical teaching. The figure was possibly used to teach young couples about anatomy and pregnancy or it may have been a collector’s item.
Details
- Category:
- Anatomy & Pathology
- Materials:
- figure, ivory, stand, ivory, stand, velvet, stand, wood
- Identifier:
- A642632
- taxonomy:
-
- furnishing and equipment
- tools & equipment
- medical demonstration equipment
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Data in the title, made, maker and details fields are released under Creative Commons Zero
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