Aconitum variegatum - Wolf’s Bane, Monkshood

Aconitum is thought to be from the Greek ἀκόνιτον - “without struggle”. And it is without struggle that this plant causes death.

This beautiful perennial flower can be seen through the autumn months in forests and taigas in Europe, and is popular as an ornamental in gardens, lending color long after summer blooms have faded.

It can also be found in the traditional bikh poison, nepaline, in the writings of Ovid and Dioscorides, and in the bodies of murdered Borgia family members.

Flora Conspicua; a selection of the most ornamental flowering, hardy, exotic and indigenous trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants. Richard Morris, 1826.

Skeleton of the Grivet (Cercopithecidae aethrops)

Grivets are Old-World monkeys that live in large packs in Ethiopia and the surrounding areas in East Africa. Despite not having prehensile tails (part of being an Old-World primate), are fairly arboreal creatures. Their long tails still come in handy, though - they’re used in balance much like cats use their tails.

These monkeys are extremely omnivorous. They’ll eat anything from fruits, to edible leaves, to fish, to other meats. They’ve been observed snatching small birds out of midair and eating them, after scaring them out of their nests (which they then raid for eggs).

Vergleichen de Osteologie. Eduard d’Alton, 1821.

Northern Wolverine - Gulo borealis (now recognized as a sub-population of Gulo gulo luscus)

Check out the huge paws and the distance from the ribcage to the edge of the body - the thick, oily fur, and the fat padding keep the wolverine resistant to frost, and the big paws allow it to “snowshoe” across the winter tundra. Well, that, and they help them take down prey as large as mule deer and moose calves.

Wolverines are the largest (or at least most powerful) carnivores active throughout the year in most holarctic regions of the world.

Vergleichende Osteologie von Christian H. Pander und Eduard d’Alton, 1821-1831.

Paeonia officinalis - European Peony

The European peony is one of the oldest cultivated species of peony, and also one of the most uncommon to be found in gardens these days. They can still be found wild throughout Europe, however.

Flora Conspicua. Richard Morris, 1826.

Lathyrus grandiflorus -The Two-Flowered Everlasting Pea

The everlasting pea is a species of the genus Lathyrus (pea plants) that’s indigenous to Great Britain. It doesn’t set down seed well, and is not considered healthy to eat, when it does (much like the sweet pea).

However, despite its difficulty of cultivation in a home garden, everlasting peas are still popular ornamentals, and the seedlings are available at most greenhouses and nurseries throughout Europe. The tendrils that you see at the end of each stem will climb trellises and other plants easily, so it’s inadvisable to plant everlasting peas near any other herbaceous growths.

Flora Conspicua; A Selection of the Most Ornamental Flowering, Hardy, Exotic and Indigenous Trees, Shrubs, and Herbaceous Plants, For Embellishing Flower-Gardens and Pleasure-Grounds. Richard Morris, 1826.

Canis Zorda [now Vulpes zerda] - Fennec Fox

The Fennec fox is indigenous to Northern Africa, especially around Morocco, but is common in zoos around the world. Their large ears dissipate the heat of the desert, and their thick fur keeps them warm during the surprisingly-cold nights of the Sahara. They’re the smallest canid in the world, and often weigh less than 3 lbs as adults. Despite their tiny size, their ears can reach up to six inches across. Like many desert residents, Fennecs are opportunistic feeders. They consume eggs of birds and reptiles, rodents, and reptiles themselves, as well as a large number of insects.

Interestingly, the Fennec fox’s paws are much more similar to the Arctic foxes than any other fox species. They’re large and fur-covered, which protect them from the blisteringly-hot sand, rather than the frigid snow and ice.

Atlas zu der Reise im nordlichen Afrika. Eduard Ruppell, 1926.

Angeiographie

Vascularization of the organs and muscles. The viscera requires an amazing amount of oxygenated blood to do its job properly, which is one of the many reasons you don’t want to get shot in the gut.

Note the inclusion of the veins that go from the intestines to the liver in the top right quadrant of this plate (the image with the blue vessels) - the hepatic portal vein is not a “true” vein, in that it does not take deoxygenated blood back to the heart and lungs, but it takes nutrient-rich blood from the GI tract into the capillary beds of the liver for processing. 

Anatomie Methodique, ou, Organographie Humaine. Jean-Baptiste Sarlandière, 1829.

Splanchnographie

General anatomy of the abdominothoracic region and its organs, including the female generative organs.

Anatomie Methodique, ou, Organographie Humaine. Jean-Baptiste Sarlandière, 1829.

propagandery:

Lithographische Abbildungen der chirurgischen - Franze Andreas Ott - 1829 (edoc.hu-berlin.de) a (by peacay)

Craniotomy tools for various afflictions.

“Mad dog”

This 1826 cartoon depicts a “mad dog” in the London streets, attacking people. You can note the “Hydrophobia!” warning posted in the upper left-hand side of the caricature.

Rabies was definitely a thing people wanted to avoid, and was especially terrifying because they didn’t understand anything useful about the virus. All they knew was if you got bit by a mad dog, you had less than a year before you went dumb or manic and then ended up dead, yourself…at least if your bite wound didn’t get infected and kill you before then!

Skeleton of the Ibis

Essay on the Theory of the Earth. Georges Cuvier, 1827.