Reconstruction: Medical Needles for couching the Cataract

[Martin Moser]

Hi,

I would have liked to present my latest two reconstructions of Roman medical equipment, but just found that you can't upload pics here. They are medical needles used for couching the cataract, as described in Celsus et al. One is massive, the other made up of two parts, forming a syringe style needle when the inner part is removed and was possibly used for removing the lense by suction.

Unfortunately I do not have a homepage or something the like available for putting up the pictures, but will be happy to send them per email to anyone interested.

See e.g. www.sbv-fsa.ch/infopool/weg/wegarchiv/2005/200502_09.html for the originals.

Both originally come from a find in Montbellet, France, and are part of a set of five.

Literature: Michel Feugere, Ernst Künzl, Ursula Weisser. Les Aiguilles a Cataracte de Montbellet - Die Starnadeln von Montbellet

cheers,

Martin

[Praefectusclassis]

Is it this pic you meant?


Martin, if you need hosting space to store pictures for use on RAT, email me and I'll give you some.

[Martin Moser]

Yes, that is the one I meant. Needle lenght is from 135 to 165mm (except for the bottom one, which is missing the last part as you can see). I reconstructed the 1st and 4th from top so far. The topmost is one of the two of the set that were found to be hollow with a removeable inner needle. The other one is the one in the middle, which is the only one with a comparatively simple finish. The other for are more elaborately designed, all carrying circular and spiral silver inlay work.

cheers,

Martin

PS: thanks for the offer, Jasper, I emailed you privately about it.

[Martin Moser]

Hi,

here are some (not so good) pics of the reconstructions









Martin

[LUCIUS ALFENUS AVITIANUS]

Impresionant. :o o o o

I have made some medical tools, but not so beauty. How do yo do the hole for the needle? And the spiral inlay?

[Martin Moser]

Hi Cesar,

How do yo do the hole for the needle? And the spiral inlay?

Good question. This is the bit where I (partially) cheated a little. The original has both the thick, spiraled and the thin, ca. 3cm syringe-like needle (it does have a 2mm hole at the tip) in front of it made by rolling flat bronze sheets so that they form a pipe (or a hollow point for the needle). I did that for the needle, but the spiraled pipe is a massive brass rod with ahole drilled through. Obviously not something easy to do as you need to drill a 1.5mm hole over a length of 120mm and was done by a company specializing in "deep drilling" (literally translated from German). From my experience with the needle itself, though, I think I could have done the thick part like the original as well ...

For the spiral inlay basically the description given by Crispus in the "Pugios and silver inlay" thread is true for this one as well. The only exception is that as this is done on a curved surface I was able to use a goldsmith's saw to create the channel for the silver wire. A punch for hammering the wire into the channel proved to be the most convenient method, but I did it with a small hammer alone on the other, massive needle shown. The hard part are the first 1-2cm, as the wire tends to stand up and rise out of the channel again as you continue.

Also you should try and use the punch/hammer in a way as to "drive" (or displace) the wire material towards the direction of the still empty channel (a bit hard to describe in English for me). In other words, you don't want to push the wire back in that direction, where you have already inlaid the channel, as this also tends to rise the material out of the groove again.

Hope this description is somewhat intelligible, if you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

cheers,

Martin

[Gaivs Antonivs Satvrninvs]

Hi,Martin.
Recently I saw a TV program from BBc/History channel Int.
on "Galen,doctor to the gladiators".
This very interesting program had all your
tools and even mentioned "couching".

Are those your reproductions?
It's odd that soon after your
posting they showed up on telly.

Great work.

cheers!

[Martin Moser]

Hi Andy,

Recently I saw a TV program from BBc/History channel Int. on "Galen,doctor to the gladiators".
This very interesting program had all your
tools and even mentioned "couching".
Are those your reproductions?

No, not mine. Would have liked to see it ... (The only thing I ever did for History Channel was their Coloseum documentary, where I was the Murmillo. Should you happen to see it, the guy bleeding heavily from his forehead is me, and it actually was my blood ... )

I am not aware of any other reproductions of the Montbellet find, but that doesn't mean nobody ever attempted them. Did they actually show the 2-piece hollow ones? Massive needles are known from other finds as well, what's really special about the 5 needles from Montbellet are the two hollow ones.

cheers,

Martin

[LUCIUS ALFENUS AVITIANUS]

Dear Martin,

A english group, Roma Antiqua, have a lot of reproductions of medical implements, including a cataract needle with hollow and needle.

I don't have photos, but probably Aitor Iriarte can put a photo, because Roma Antiqua was in the Ludi Veleienses, a event related with him.

I like VERY much your medical box, showed in the Hasta Pura section. A very good job.

[aitor iriarte]

Eerrh
I have had that needle several times in my hand but never while carying a camera with me... :oops:

Aitor

[Martin Moser]

I have had that needle several times in my hand but never while carying a camera with me...

too bad, would have liked to see it ... do they have a homepage, perhaps?

thanks,

Martin

[aitor iriarte]

No, they haven't. They are rather old-fashioned! :wink:
I'll try to contact Gordon Henderson (the only one having e-mail) but he is rather slow in answering...

Aitor

[Gaivs Antonivs Satvrninvs]

Hi,Martin.

Thanks for the response.
I have the episode on the
Colosseum recorded.
I'll get it out and see if I can find you.
If you're bleeding that much I doubt
you'd be hard to miss.

[Marius_Ursus]

How many specialized medical devices are catalogued for the Romans?

[Martin Moser]

Hi,

How many specialized medical devices are catalogued for the Romans?

her is a short list cited from Matthäus, Hartmut. Der Arzt in römischer Zeit. Medizinische Instrumente und Arzneien. 1989. pp 16-38:

Scalpel /scalpellus, scalper, culter
Phlebotom / phlebotomum, scalpellus
Scissors / forfex
"Diokles' spoon" / diokleios
Saw / serrula
Trepan / modiolus
Chisel / scalper, scalprum planum
Elevator (for bones, not people :-) ) ) / elevatorium
Rasp / scalper excisorius, lima
Sharp and Blunt Hooks/ hamulus acutus, hamus retusus
Forceps / forceps
Tweezers / vulsella
Cauter / ferrum candens
Needle / acus
Cupping vessel / cucurbitula
Probe / specillum
Catheter / fistula
Speculum / speculum

That should be roughly it. Of course of all of the above mentioned there exist s a number of variations, suited to many different purposes and documented by archaeological finds. The only one that is debatable seems to be the find of the "Diokles' spoon" from Ephesos (displayed in the museum there), whose authenticity is doubted by some. Celsus however devoted a small chapter to it, so we know it did actually exist (De Medicina, Book VII, Ch. 5/3).

cheers,

Martin