University Health Network - Academy of Medicine Collection
Category
Diagnostic & Treatment Artifacts
Classification
General Treatment
Accession Number
002050002 a-e
Description
Enema syringe consists of a large cylindrical pewter (a) barrel with ribbed shaft; top of barrel holds an angled (b) nozzle tip; from the bottom of barrel extends a handle for wooden (c) plunger; metal (d) plunger head with fabric wrapped around the middle has detached from plunger handle; metal (e…
Enema syringe consists of a large cylindrical pewter (a) barrel with ribbed shaft; top of barrel holds an angled (b) nozzle tip; from the bottom of barrel extends a handle for wooden (c) plunger; metal (d) plunger head with fabric wrapped around the middle has detached from plunger handle; metal (e) cap screws onto bottom of barrel.
Number Of Parts
5
Part Names
a - barrel - Size: Length 37.5 cm x Diam 9.5 cm
b - nozzle tip - Size: Length 13.0 cm x Diam 3.0 cm
c - plunger - Size: Length 45.7 cm x Diam 4.7 cm
d - plunger head - Size: Length 7.4 cm x Diam 4.0 cm
e - cap - Size: Length 5.3 cm x Diam 9.5 cm
Provenance
Originally belonged with Dr. Drake's collection of medical artefacts and ceramics; later bequested to Academy of Medicine
Date taken from donor file and book on Dr. Drake's collection.
Material
metal: silver
wood: brown
fabric: brown
rubber: brown
Inscriptions
Handwritten in pen on barrel and plunger: "DD124"
Permanent Location
Storage Room 0010
0010-E6-15
Condition Remarks
Barrel has some chips, dents and scratches; rubber disk around nozzle is disintegrating; plunger head is wrapped in bristly fabric which is caked with dust; plunger head has detached from plunger handle.
Copy Type
Original
Reference Types
Book
JPG
Reference Comments
"Antique Medical Instruments", Ellisabeth Bennion, 1979, pp. 169-173.; "Nurturing Yesterday's Child: A Portrait of the Drake Collection of Paediatric History", Mary Spaulding and Penny Welch, 1994, pp. 1-3, 222-225; "The Evolution of Surgical Instruments: An Illustrated History from Ancient Times to the Twentieth Century", John Kirkup MD, FRCS, 2005, pp. 228-230; CD #1.
Research Facts
Large enema syringes, also known as clysters, were popular around the 1800s, and reflected the then current belief in the benefits of purging the body on a regular basis. Doctors, apothecaries and individuals themselves could administer enema solutions via clyster syringes for the purposes of colonic irrigation. These clysters could have different nozzle attachments and hoses for an easier reach for the self-administering user. Clysters evolved to be smaller and sometimes more discrete as in the case of travelling clysters which were shaped to look like a book. This item was a part of a large collection of items belonging to Dr. Drake, a paediatrician and nutritionist who co-developed the Pablum cereal. Picture of this particular enema syringe features in a book on Dr. Drake's collection.