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Recent Acquisition! Tea-cups, Princess Charlotte, and the History of Birth

Recent acquisition! This cup and saucer set c. 1818 commemorates the death of Princess Charlotte after giving birth. The heir to the throne of England labored for 50 hours without intervention before delivering a large, stillborn son in 1817. Charlotte's physicians came from the non-interventionist school of #obstetrics, meaning they used no forceps to assist or hasten the child's stalled birth. Further, no destructive instruments (those that would have sacrificed the child to spare Charlotte) would have been used because of infant's royal status. In fact, physicians attempted to resuscitate the stillborn baby, thinking he was in a state...

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Book Review: My Notorious Life by Kate Manning

Today on the Fiction Reboot | Daily Dose, we present a review of My Notorious Life!  This work is based upon the true story of Anne Lohman, also known as Madame Restell, a prominent New York midwife enveloped in scandal, who died by suicide in 1879. The Dittrick Museum will host Kate Manning for a short talk and book signing on Sept 19th; RSVP to jks4@case.edu. “Women’s Private Matters”: Thoughts on My Notorious Life by Kate Manning Reviewed by--Anna Clutterbuck-Cook Halfway through Kate Manning’s historical bildungs roman, My Notorious Life (Scribner, 2014) the young protagonist confronts her husband. Axie Ann (Muldoon) Jones...

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(Don't) Call the Midwife? A look at Royal Birth

In recently months, the media has been alight with news about the #RoyalBaby--the expected first child of Princess Kate (formerly Middleton) and Prince William. Hashtags like the one above are, of course, a little misleading; in many ways, the news that has been circulated, discussed, and endlessly retweeted has been less about the baby than his means of arriving here. Questions concerned Kate herself: How was the pregnancy going? Was there any morning sickness? Did the princess feel strange cravings? There were also more general (though often political) questions about succession if the new baby was a girl instead...

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On the Trail of the Machine: William Smellie's "Celebrated Apparatus"

Last week, Dr. Edmonson (curator of the Dittrick Museum), provided a kind introduction to my work. Today, I am happy to continue the tale with part one of a two-part series.        This journey took place over the course of three years, on two continents--and through the wonderful collections of several museums, beginning with our own Dittrick. I give you the tale--of a trail. --Brandy Schillace, PhD _________________________________________  On the Trail of the Machine: William Smellie's "Celebrated Apparatus" What is the lifespan of a medical device? Most generally, the utility of any instrument determines its tenure in medical practice—and subsequent models evolve to replace their...

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