Hello! My name is Kira Medish (Junior in Kirkland House) and I’m so excited to share my findings with the Rosenkrantz blog community! After a restful week in Greece and Germany, I now find myself in the exquisite city of London for the next 6 days. For the next week my plan is to explore as many museums, archives and historical sites as possible to gain insight into the life and work of John Hughlings Jackson. My hope is that by the end of this week I will learn more about Jackson’s time as a Neurologist in Queens Square Hospital. Today is Saturday, August 10th. I began the day with a traditional English breakfast with eggs, bacon, sausage and the whole nine yards… and of course a cup of English tea! After the filling meal, I found my way to my family friends’ home in Shepherd’s Bush (West London) and settled in to my new environment.
Hearty Eggs with Bacon and Sausage and Baked Beans, Baked Tomatoes and Sourdough Bread
Next, I set out for the tube (London’s Underground) to purchase my 7-day Oyster Pass—London’s “Charlie Card.” One of the first observations I had was at how large of a city London really is. Coming from the city of Washington D.C, I consider myself a city-girl-in-training. Indeed, I had spent the last 10 weeks shuttling downtown on the zippy Metro toward the Capitol for my internship at a Think Tank. Alas! I was in for a surprise. Prior to arriving in the Underground, I had the honest belief that I was prepped and ready to triumph over the impenetrable London Underground. As one might expect, I found myself not only on the wrong train, but the wrong line. I quickly re-oriented myself and downloaded the Underground Map on my phone and set it as my screensaver. As is common on weekends, most of the libraries and archives I wanted to see were closed or had limited opening hours, so I used my time to plan my week with special focus on logistics and opening hours while enjoying a dinner in the city.
The primary places in and around London I plan to visit are:
(1) the National Hospital of Neurology and Neurosurgery (NHNN) at Queens Square, which is part of University College London (UCL) and is the successor institution of the National Hospital for the Paralysed and Epileptic, where Jackson practiced for several decades (1862-1902), specializing on epilepsy, seizures and speech defects. The Queens Square Hospital has both an active clinical side and a museum component. The museum is part of the UCL Queens Square Institute of Neurology and houses the archives of NHNN, including “an extensive collection of 1500 bound volumes of NHNN case notescovering the years 1863-1946 including many examples of early medical photography. [Additionally], a hand-written index of patients is currently being transcribed into a database.”[1]Here I will be able to study the hand-written case notes of Dr. Hughlings Jackson and track his clinical research through the late 1800’s.
(2) The Royal London Hospital Museum in Whitechapel, formerly known as London Hospital, where Jackson also practiced and lectured for several decades.
(3) the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) Wellcome Museum is closed for renovation until 2020, but its archives have been spread to partner institutions in London including the National Archives at Kew and the London Metropolitan Archives (LMA). I will try to track down the History of Medicine collection as well as any special collections relating to Jackson and his neuroscience colleagues.
(4) the Old Operating Theatre at St Thomas’ Church, Southwark. This museum houses an operating theatre dating to 1822, similar to the Ether Dome in Boston. The website explains: “Predating anesthetics and antiseptics, it is the oldest surviving surgical theatre in Europe.”[2]Every week there is a talk about Victorian Surgery and what it was like to be a patient and/or surgeon during the 19thcentury. I plan to attend such a weekly talk and hopefully speak with the curator afterwards for more information.
(5) as a special excursion, I might visit Jackson’s grave at Highgate Cemetery (West side). If time permits, I might also swing by the grave of Karl Marx on the East side of the Cemetery.
On the morning of Sunday, August 11th, I took the Northern Line to Camden Market--a flea market of sorts--with unique odds and ends. After that I connected with Rosie who's also in London on the Rosenkrantz Discovery Grant studying the "origins" of the AntiVax movement. After an hour of spotty service communication mixed with foreboding weather, we managed to meet up at the famous St. Paul's Cathedral (unfortunately, the cathedral is closed for tourists on Sundays), but we still took a nice, leisurely stroll around the grounds. We then set out for Tate Modern Museum across the Millennium Bridge and spent the next hour perusing the galleries.
This is a wire sculpture of the International Space Station in Tate Modern
One of many Rothko paintings
After quickly orienting myself in this rich and beautiful city with Rosie by my side, we set out for (4) the Old Operating Theatre at St. Thomas' Church Museum. Upon entering the "building," we looked up to find a narrow 52 step spiral staircase [pictured below].
When we finally made it to the top of the staircase we were ready for some eye-opening exhibits. Although I had planned to attend the 4pm viewing of the Victorian Surgery in the Old Operating Theatre, I found out upon arrival that the tickets were sold out. Nevertheless, we made our way through the museum filled with herbs and medicines of the past. From first glance, the museum appeared somewhat overwhelming with mysterious metal tools strewn about on every surface and herbal aromas monopolizing the air flow. The first "show case" was one on odd animal-based remedies like using snake skin for skin abrasions, and puffer fish for their tetrodotoxin.
 |
| Here's a picture of the odd animal remedies |
Next, we wandered over to look at the surgical tools that were used in the 19th to 20th centuries for brain-related procedures. An array of small saw-like tools and hammers were on display. In addition, they had a cross section of a brain from the 19th century on display which was fascinating. This was all very interesting in that it offered a little more insight into what brain surgery might have been like during Hughlings Jackson's time as a Neurologist in England.
A display of the medical techniques relevant to the brain
After looking through all of the odds and ends on display--including OBGYN tools, kidney stone removal equipment and more--we wound up in the Old Operating Theatre. This room came into existence in the 1822 and was initially a place where poor English women would seek surgery and medical help. From its conception it was meant to be used only for poor females as men and wealthier women would receive care at home. The majority of procedures that occurred here were for superficial injuries and amputations--none of which benefited from antiseptic technique.
 |
| In this picture you can see a whole collection of kidney stones and a few of the "spoons" doctors used to remove the stones! |
 |
| The Operating Theatre |
 |
| The message reads: "After the Surgeon had finished for the day he would wash his hands and forearms, hang up his coat, look at his face in the tiny looking glass..." |
The first two days were a success! I was able to orient myself not only in the somewhat daunting city of London, but also in the English medical and surgical world during the Victorian era. Onto the archives and libraries I go!
Well done! Look forward to more updates!
ReplyDelete