Imaging the Medical Humanities: Infection

It's been far too long since we did an installment of Imaging the Medical Humanities.  Today's post will cover "Infection."  All images are courtesy of the Wellcome Library, London.  I was surprised to find almost 30 times as many historical images for "infection" as for "contagion," given my understanding that the latter was a much more common term, at least during the 19th century.  In any case, "infection" is a crucial concept for the medical humanities, for a number of reasons.  This recent post on disease causality should suggest some reasons.

In any case, enjoy the images.

Hieronymus Fracastorius (Girolamo Fracastoro) shows the shepherd Syphilus and the hunter Ilceus being warned against yielding to temptation with the danger of infection with syphilis. Engraving by Jan Sadeler I after Christoph Schwartz, 1588/1595.

The louse and death are friends and comrades. Kill all lice carrying infection!
The typhus louse shaking hands with Death
Coloured Lithograph 1919 By: O. Grin

Cow Poxed, Ox Faced Boy - illustration to "Cow-Pox Inoculation No Security Against Small-Pox Infection" by W. Rowley.
Coloured etching early 19th century

Government of India, inoculating a community against cholera in Calcutta, March 1894.
Half-tone reproduction 1894

Woodcut illustration from an edition of 1591 (19th year of the Wanli reign period of the Ming dynasty), showing the acu-moxa locations commonly employed in the treatment of opisthotonos (jiaogong fanzhang -- rigidity and severe arching of the back, with the head thrown backwards as in meningitis) in children. See 'Lettering' for full list of point names.

A woman wearing a sandwich-board inscribed "I've got VD", showing the absurdity of the assumption that a woman would not pass on a venereal infection to an American sailor.
Colour Lithograph 1948
Printed: U.S.Navy Bureau of Naval Personnel Washington D.C ?

   

Comments

[James]

lol....My personal favorite is the "I've got VD" poster for Navy sailors. I compared it to the one from 1595 about syphilis and I think that the majority of people would quickly understand the newer one while only the elite of society would understand the elite drawing from 1585. Great post.

James