Health & Medicine

Iron Lung

The Museum's collections of medical science artifacts represent nearly all aspects of health and medical practice. Highlights include early X-ray apparatuses, such as one of Wilhelm Roentgen's tubes, penicillin mold from Alexander Fleming’s experiments, and Jonas Salk's original polio vaccine. More recent acquisitions include the first artificial heart implanted in a human, the earliest genetically engineered drugs, and materials related to David, the "Bubble Boy." Other artifacts range from artificial limbs and implant devices to bloodletting and dental instruments, beauty products, and veterinary equipment. The contents of a medieval apothecary shop and an 1890s drugstore form part of the collections, along with patent and alternative medicines. The collections also document the many differing perspectives on health and medical issues, from patients, family members, doctors, nurses, medical students, and out-of-the-mainstream health practitioners.

Guerlain L'Heure Bleue Parfum Recharge Atomiseur

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1982
maker
Guerlain
ID Number
2009.3030.40
nonaccession number
2009.3030
catalog number
2009.3030.40

Hart's Swedish Asthma and Hay Fever Cure

The indications or uses for this product as provided on its packaging:For asthma and hay feverCurrently not on view
Description
The indications or uses for this product as provided on its packaging:
For asthma and hay fever
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
ca 1904
maker
Hart's Swedish Asthma Cure Company
ID Number
MG.M-10415.02
catalog number
M-10415
accession number
246707

Lipstick Case

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
1985.0605.08
catalog number
1985.0605.08
accession number
1985.0605

Lynas Toilet Soap

The indications or uses for this product as provided by the manufacturer are:Medicinal Antiseptic Complexion Toilet SoapCurrently not on view
Description
The indications or uses for this product as provided by the manufacturer are:
Medicinal Antiseptic Complexion Toilet Soap
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1910s
maker
Dr. J.B. Lynas & Son
ID Number
1986.0873.45
accession number
1986.0873
catalog number
1986.0873.45

Elizabeth Arden Velva Leg Film, Sun Copper

While leg makeup was commercially available since the 1920s, it wasn't until rationing was introduced during the Second World War that leg makeup became an essential commodity for many American women.Silk and nylon became virtually unatainable, so, unable to procure silk or nylon
Description
While leg makeup was commercially available since the 1920s, it wasn't until rationing was introduced during the Second World War that leg makeup became an essential commodity for many American women.
Silk and nylon became virtually unatainable, so, unable to procure silk or nylon stockings, many women resorted to painting their legs with products such as this Velva Leg Film. Some industrious ladies even painted black lines down the back of their legs to mimic the seams of hosiery.
Velva Leg film was manufactured in the Nineteen Forties by Elizabeth Arden, a Canadian-born American businesswoman known for her beauty salons and cosmetic products.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1943
product launch
1933
maker
Elizabeth Arden Inc.
ID Number
1985.0481.384
catalog number
1985.0481.384
accession number
1985.0481

Golden Peacock Shampoo

In 1913, the Mitchum Warren family established the Paris Toilet Company in Paris, Tenn., to market a bleaching cream for freckles. The company name was changed in 1927 to the Golden Peacock Company and later became the Mitchum Company.
Description
In 1913, the Mitchum Warren family established the Paris Toilet Company in Paris, Tenn., to market a bleaching cream for freckles. The company name was changed in 1927 to the Golden Peacock Company and later became the Mitchum Company. It was said that one of the founding family’s sons, Mitchum Warren, grew tired of being asked if his family made toilets.
The company’s best known product line, Mitchum antiperspirants, was launched in 1959. It is still on the market today (2012), although the brand has been owned by the Revlon company since 1970. This bottle of Golden Peacock Shampoo dates to the company’s first era: 1913 to 1927.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1913-1927
maker
Paris Toilet Company
ID Number
1978.0883.084
accession number
1978.0883
catalog number
1978.0883.084

Violet Talc Powder - Colgate & Co.

The indications or uses for this product as provided by the manufacturer are:For infants, for the toilet. It is antiseptic, slightly astringent, a wonderful healer of chafing, soreness, abrasions, irritations, sunburns etc.Currently not on view
Description
The indications or uses for this product as provided by the manufacturer are:
For infants, for the toilet. It is antiseptic, slightly astringent, a wonderful healer of chafing, soreness, abrasions, irritations, sunburns etc.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1900
maker
Colgate and Co.
ID Number
MG.293320.0851
catalog number
293320.0851
accession number
293320

Nurse's Cap

Maria Jayme was born January 14th, 1971 in General Santos City, Philippines and received a nursing degree from the San Pedro College of Nursing in Davao, Philippines in 1991. Maria received this nurse’s cap during the graduation capping ceremony.
Description
Maria Jayme was born January 14th, 1971 in General Santos City, Philippines and received a nursing degree from the San Pedro College of Nursing in Davao, Philippines in 1991. Maria received this nurse’s cap during the graduation capping ceremony. In 1994 she immigrated to the United States and worked as a registered nurse in Florida. Between 1965 and 1988 more than 70,000 foreign nurses came to the United States. 25,000 Filipina nurses provided a critical source of labor for hospitals in New York, New Jersey, Florida, California, Texas, and Massachusetts.
date made
ca 1991
ID Number
2007.0218.01
catalog number
2007.0218.01
accession number
2007.0218

Colgate And Co. Perfumers Sample Box

Box containing samples of three Colgate products: Violet Toilet Water; Antiseptic Dental Powder (dated Sept. 11, 1895); and Rum and Quinine Tonic Lotion.Currently not on view
Description
Box containing samples of three Colgate products: Violet Toilet Water; Antiseptic Dental Powder (dated Sept. 11, 1895); and Rum and Quinine Tonic Lotion.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1897
maker
Colgate and Co.
ID Number
MG.293320.0907
catalog number
293320.0907
accession number
293320

Elizabeth Arden Blue Grass Flower Mist

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1936-1940
product relaunch
1989
product launch
1934
maker
Elizabeth Arden Inc.
ID Number
2009.0098.01
accession number
2009.0098
catalog number
2009.0098.01

To-Ne-Ka Foot Balm Cream

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
maker
CTS Laboratories
ID Number
1980.0746.07
accession number
1980.0746
catalog number
1980.0746.07

Brooks' Baby Balm

The indications or uses for this product as provided on its packaging:A soothing quiet remedy to regulate the stomach and bowels of infants and children. For teething troubles, summer complaint, diarrhea and constipation.
Description
The indications or uses for this product as provided on its packaging:
A soothing quiet remedy to regulate the stomach and bowels of infants and children. For teething troubles, summer complaint, diarrhea and constipation. A laxative, sedative, digestive, neutralizing, aromatic, and antiseptic. Equally effectual for diarrheas and bowel troubles in adults.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
after 1906
maker
William Brooks Medicine Company
ID Number
MG.M-10414.05
catalog number
M-10414
accession number
246707

Lynn's Ex-Ze-Em Ointment

The indications or uses for this product as provided on its packaging: To aid in the temporary relief of the discomfort of burning and itching accompanying eczemaCurrently not on view
Description
The indications or uses for this product as provided on its packaging: To aid in the temporary relief of the discomfort of burning and itching accompanying eczema
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
ca 1930
Associated Name
Tupper's Pharmacy
maker
Lynn Chemical Company
ID Number
1980.0698.028
accession number
1980.0698
catalog number
1980.0698.028

Caroco Complexion Bloom White

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Caroco Laboratories
ID Number
1978.0883.199
accession number
1978.0883
catalog number
1978.0883.199

Renard Thin Steel Double Edge Blades

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
maker
National Package Drugs
ID Number
1985.0475.780
catalog number
1985.0475.780
accession number
1985.0475

Lillehei-Nakib Toroidal Disc Heart Valves

These three pieces are parts from the Lillehei-Nakib Toroidal Disc Mitral valves. There is one donut, one valve without a cloth suture, and one complete valve. The design is toroidal, meaning donut shaped, with a non-tilting, pivoting disc design.
Description (Brief)
These three pieces are parts from the Lillehei-Nakib Toroidal Disc Mitral valves. There is one donut, one valve without a cloth suture, and one complete valve. The design is toroidal, meaning donut shaped, with a non-tilting, pivoting disc design. This is one of the four kinds of valves Dr. C. Walton Lillehei developed with colleagues. During the time of its creation, Dr. Lillehei was president of the American College of Cardiology. Ahmad Nakib is a Lebanese doctor who was trained in Lebanon and later trained at University of Minnesota as a thoracic surgeon. The valve was manufactured by Washington Scientific Industries, a company based in Minneapolis that, at the time, produced gun mounts for the navy. The valve was implanted it approximately 1,500 patients but had limited success.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1967
ID Number
2015.0031.26
catalog number
2015.0031.26
accession number
2015.0031

Safety Razor

Steel safety razor with a “GEM” inscription. An inscription on the cardboard box reads “We guarantee the perfection / and shave satisfaction of this / Gem Safety Razor and its / marvelous Gem Double-Life / Blade.
Description
Steel safety razor with a “GEM” inscription. An inscription on the cardboard box reads “We guarantee the perfection / and shave satisfaction of this / Gem Safety Razor and its / marvelous Gem Double-Life / Blade. Gem blades are sold / everywhere and always run / 100% perfect to the package.”
Ref: Ad for Gem Double Life Blades in Popular Mechanics (Feb. 1926): 162.
Location
Currently not on view (cardboard box; paper inserts)
date made
ca 1923
maker
Gem Safety Razor Corporation
ID Number
1985.0481.230
accession number
1985.0481
catalog number
1985.0481.230

Dr Isaac Thompson's Eye Water

[No indications or uses for this product are provided on its packaging.]Currently not on view
Description
[No indications or uses for this product are provided on its packaging.]
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
ca 1920
ca 1900
maker
John L. Thompson Sons & Co.
ID Number
MG.M-10426.26
catalog number
M-10426
accession number
246707

Florentine Bottle

Free blown green glass container with a long neck, a round squat body and an applied curved spout. Florentine bottles were used for the distillation of flower oils.Currently not on view
Description
Free blown green glass container with a long neck, a round squat body and an applied curved spout. Florentine bottles were used for the distillation of flower oils.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
17th-18th century
ID Number
1991.0664.0929
collector/donor number
SAP 1017
accession number
1991.0664
catalog number
M-06325
1991.0664.0929

Pond's Make-up Pat, Peach

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
mid-1940s
maker
Pond's Extract Company
ID Number
1985.0475.206
catalog number
1985.0475.206
accession number
1985.0475

Ideal Antiseptic Tablets

The indications or uses for this product as provided on its packaging:For all diseases of the female generative organs, whites, leucorrhea, ulceration, discharges, etc.Currently not on view
Description
The indications or uses for this product as provided on its packaging:
For all diseases of the female generative organs, whites, leucorrhea, ulceration, discharges, etc.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1920
maker
Ideal Chemical Company
ID Number
MG.M-10413.32
accession number
246707
catalog number
M-10413.32

Ophthalmoscope

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
1981.0957.16
accession number
1981.0957
catalog number
1981.0957.16

Razor

Steel safety razor.Currently not on view
Description
Steel safety razor.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
1978.0883.279
accession number
1978.0883
catalog number
1978.0883.279

Ophthalmic Forceps

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Storz Instrument Company
ID Number
1990.0658.09
catalog number
1990.0658.09
accession number
1990.0658

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