Decapitating hook, London, England,1851-1900 This steel decapitating hook was a destructive obstetric tool. It is shaped like an umbrella handle. It removed a dead foetus from within the mother’s body. The simple design inserted into the mother’s birth canal and hooked onto part of the child. The sturdy handle gave the physician good grip when extracting the body. This decapitating hook is serrated on the inner edge. It extracted the whole body or parts of the body. It was made by London-based surgical instrument makers Down Brothers.

Aug 16 -

Decapitating hook, London, England,1851-1900

This steel decapitating hook was a destructive obstetric tool. It is shaped like an umbrella handle. It removed a dead foetus from within the mother’s body. The simple design inserted into the mother’s birth canal and hooked onto part of the child. The sturdy handle gave the physician good grip when extracting the body. This decapitating hook is serrated on the inner edge. It extracted the whole body or parts of the body. It was made by London-based surgical instrument makers Down Brothers.

(Source: catafalques)

cat·a·falque noun \ˈka-tə-ˌfȯ(l)k, -ˌfalk\ 1: an ornamental structure sometimes used in funerals for the lying in state of the body 2: a pall-covered coffin-shaped structure used at requiem masses celebrated after burial