Laryngoscopic set used by Mott

Laryngoscopic set, plated metal and plastic, in leather case, owned by Sir Frederick Mott, made by Heinrich Reiner, Vienna, 1875-1885

A laryngoscope is a type of viewing instrument that consists of a thin tube with a light and mirror lens. It is used by medical practitioners to inspect the larynx (voice box). This procedure is known as a laryngoscopy.

Laryngoscopies are performed to detect the causes of voice problems and throat pain, and to diagnose upper respiratory tract diseases. In the nineteenth century, it was particularly important for doctors to be able to view the inside of the throat because of the proliferation of life-threatening infectious diseases that affected the larynx, like diphtheria. Laryngoscopes allowed doctors to see past the tongue, which naturally blocks the view to the larynx.

This laryngoscope set was owned by Frederick Mott (born 1853, died 1926), a neuropathologist, physician and lecturer. In 1910, Mott authored 'The Brain and the Voice in Speech and Sound', a work that explores the relationship between the physiological mechanisms of the human voice and the neurological processed involved in speech and song production. It is likely that he would have used this laryngoscope set to observe the vocal chords of his research subjects and patients.