Posts tagged museum

pepperloves1:

“While the rarity and beauty of Harvard’s Glass Flowers have won them fame and made them the Harvard Museum of Natural History’s (HMNH) most popular exhibit, the glass animals exist in relative obscurity.”

The glass sea life of the Blaschkas is some of my favorite hand-blown art out there. I regret that I missed the opportunity to see it when it was at the Minnesota Science Museum back in 2006, but it’s still too cool to pass up.

hmnh.harvard.edu

biomedicalephemera:

Megatherium americanum - The Giant Ground Sloth

The skeleton of Megatherium set up in the London Natural History Museum, and a depiction of a possibility of Megatherium behavior in life.

Though the population was already decreasing when the first humans arrived in South America, the disappearance of the Giant Sloth was helped along by the new immigrants. Using mammoth-hunting skills, this large and lumbering creature was an ideal kill for a human tribe. It was one of the many Pleistocene megafauna that went extinct during the Quaternary extinctions.

Extinct monsters. H. N. Hutchinson, 1896.

biomedicalephemera: Harlequin Ichthyosis Comprising less than 0.001% of the cases of ichthyosis, Harlequin-type ichthyosis was uniformly fatal in the past. It is an autosomal recessive condition, with both parents having to carry the same mutation of the gene ABCA12. Historically, it was known to be a disease found in first-degree and second-degree consanguineous unions (children from siblings or first cousins), but today it is not one of the major inbreeding-related or Founder effect syndromes. Harlequin infants are born with thick, plate-like keratin “armor”, often accompanied by ectropion (out-turned eyelids - that’s what causes the blood-like eye appearance). Historically, they would generally die before 14 days of age, due to dehydration, overwhelming infection/sepsis, breathing problems (from the keratin plates restricting inhalation), or related problems. None were known to survive beyond 5 months. These days, some people who are affected by Harlequin-type ichthyosis manage to survive infancy, though the percentage is still barely above half. The high retention rate and cracking of the plates of keratinous cells leaves the dermis vulnerable to disease and dehydration, but frequent application of Isoretinoin can allow the skin to shed keratin layers faster than it produces them. This allows for a higher level of flexibility and protection (because of no deep fissures in the skin). Currently, there are multiple people who have Harlequin-type ichthyosis treated by Isoretinioin and therapeutic baths who have survived long beyond anything ever seen in the past. Despite the inconvenience their condition poses, some of them present a pretty darn inspirational way of living: Nusrit “Nelly” Shaheen is 28 (born in 1984) and studied at Hereward College in the UK. She lives a very active lifestyle, and is the oldest living survivor of Harelequin-type ichthyosis. Ryan Gonzalez is 25, and lives in the United States, where he participates in triathlons and swimming competitions. He uses a different regimen from Nelly in his treatment, where he relies almost exclusively on Isoretinoin ointment. Both require a huge caloric intake to match their skins turnover rate, though. Today, there are 56 other known survivors of Harlequin-type ichthyosis that are beyond 2 years of age. It may seem like a tiny number, but a 53% survival rate at 2-years-old is certainly better than zero percent! Hopefully the future will hold new therapies for all of the ichthyosis syndromes. Image: Harlequin Fetus from 1880 at Museum Vrolik, in Amsterdam, Holland. Photograph by Zzzak.

biomedicalephemera:

Harlequin Ichthyosis

Comprising less than 0.001% of the cases of ichthyosis, Harlequin-type ichthyosis was uniformly fatal in the past. It is an autosomal recessive condition, with both parents having to carry the same mutation of the gene ABCA12. Historically, it was known to be a disease found in first-degree and second-degree consanguineous unions (children from siblings or first cousins), but today it is not one of the major inbreeding-related or Founder effect syndromes.

Harlequin infants are born with thick, plate-like keratin “armor”, often accompanied by ectropion (out-turned eyelids - that’s what causes the blood-like eye appearance). Historically, they would generally die before 14 days of age, due to dehydration, overwhelming infection/sepsis, breathing problems (from the keratin plates restricting inhalation), or related problems. None were known to survive beyond 5 months. These days, some people who are affected by Harlequin-type ichthyosis manage to survive infancy, though the percentage is still barely above half.

The high retention rate and cracking of the plates of keratinous cells leaves the dermis vulnerable to disease and dehydration, but frequent application of Isoretinoin can allow the skin to shed keratin layers faster than it produces them. This allows for a higher level of flexibility and protection (because of no deep fissures in the skin). Currently, there are multiple people who have Harlequin-type ichthyosis treated by Isoretinioin and therapeutic baths who have survived long beyond anything ever seen in the past. Despite the inconvenience their condition poses, some of them present a pretty darn inspirational way of living:

Nusrit “Nelly” Shaheen is 28 (born in 1984) and studied at Hereward College in the UK. She lives a very active lifestyle, and is the oldest living survivor of Harelequin-type ichthyosis.

Ryan Gonzalez is 25, and lives in the United States, where he participates in triathlons and swimming competitions. He uses a different regimen from Nelly in his treatment, where he relies almost exclusively on Isoretinoin ointment. Both require a huge caloric intake to match their skins turnover rate, though.

Today, there are 56 other known survivors of Harlequin-type ichthyosis that are beyond 2 years of age. It may seem like a tiny number, but a 53% survival rate at 2-years-old is certainly better than zero percent! Hopefully the future will hold new therapies for all of the ichthyosis syndromes.

Image:

Harlequin Fetus from 1880 at Museum Vrolik, in Amsterdam, Holland. Photograph by Zzzak.

Harlequin Ichthyosis Comprising less than 0.001% of the cases of ichthyosis, Harlequin-type ichthyosis was uniformly fatal in the past. It is an autosomal recessive condition, with both parents having to carry the same mutation of the gene ABCA12. Historically, it was known to be a disease found in first-degree and second-degree consanguineous unions (children from siblings or first cousins), but today it is not one of the major inbreeding-related or Founder effect syndromes. Harlequin infants are born with thick, plate-like keratin “armor”, often accompanied by ectropion (out-turned eyelids - that’s what causes the blood-like eye appearance). Historically, they would generally die before 14 days of age, due to dehydration, overwhelming infection/sepsis, breathing problems (from the keratin plates restricting inhalation), or related problems. None were known to survive beyond 5 months. These days, some people who are affected by Harlequin-type ichthyosis manage to survive infancy, though the percentage is still barely above half. The high retention rate and cracking of the plates of keratinous cells leaves the dermis vulnerable to disease and dehydration, but frequent application of Isoretinoin can allow the skin to shed keratin layers faster than it produces them. This allows for a higher level of flexibility and protection (because of no deep fissures in the skin). Currently, there are multiple people who have Harlequin-type ichthyosis treated by Isoretinioin and therapeutic baths who have survived long beyond anything ever seen in the past. Despite the inconvenience their condition poses, some of them present a pretty darn inspirational way of living: Nusrit “Nelly” Shaheen is 28 (born in 1984) and studied at Hereward College in the UK. She lives a very active lifestyle, and is the oldest living survivor of Harelequin-type ichthyosis. Ryan Gonzalez is 25, and lives in the United States, where he participates in triathlons and swimming competitions. He uses a different regimen from Nelly in his treatment, where he relies almost exclusively on Isoretinoin ointment. Both require a huge caloric intake to match their skins turnover rate, though. Today, there are 56 other known survivors of Harlequin-type ichthyosis that are beyond 2 years of age. It may seem like a tiny number, but a 53% survival rate at 2-years-old is certainly better than zero percent! Hopefully the future will hold new therapies for all of the ichthyosis syndromes. Image: Harlequin Fetus from 1880 at Museum Vrolik, in Amsterdam, Holland. Photograph by Zzzak.

Harlequin Ichthyosis

Comprising less than 0.001% of the cases of ichthyosis, Harlequin-type ichthyosis was uniformly fatal in the past. It is an autosomal recessive condition, with both parents having to carry the same mutation of the gene ABCA12. Historically, it was known to be a disease found in first-degree and second-degree consanguineous unions (children from siblings or first cousins), but today it is not one of the major inbreeding-related or Founder effect syndromes.

Harlequin infants are born with thick, plate-like keratin “armor”, often accompanied by ectropion (out-turned eyelids - that’s what causes the blood-like eye appearance). Historically, they would generally die before 14 days of age, due to dehydration, overwhelming infection/sepsis, breathing problems (from the keratin plates restricting inhalation), or related problems. None were known to survive beyond 5 months. These days, some people who are affected by Harlequin-type ichthyosis manage to survive infancy, though the percentage is still barely above half.

The high retention rate and cracking of the plates of keratinous cells leaves the dermis vulnerable to disease and dehydration, but frequent application of Isoretinoin can allow the skin to shed keratin layers faster than it produces them. This allows for a higher level of flexibility and protection (because of no deep fissures in the skin). Currently, there are multiple people who have Harlequin-type ichthyosis treated by Isoretinioin and therapeutic baths who have survived long beyond anything ever seen in the past. Despite the inconvenience their condition poses, some of them present a pretty darn inspirational way of living:

Nusrit “Nelly” Shaheen is 28 (born in 1984) and studied at Hereward College in the UK. She lives a very active lifestyle, and is the oldest living survivor of Harelequin-type ichthyosis.

Ryan Gonzalez is 25, and lives in the United States, where he participates in triathlons and swimming competitions. He uses a different regimen from Nelly in his treatment, where he relies almost exclusively on Isoretinoin ointment. Both require a huge caloric intake to match their skins turnover rate, though.

Today, there are 56 other known survivors of Harlequin-type ichthyosis that are beyond 2 years of age. It may seem like a tiny number, but a 53% survival rate at 2-years-old is certainly better than zero percent! Hopefully the future will hold new therapies for all of the ichthyosis syndromes.

Image:

Harlequin Fetus from 1880 at Museum Vrolik, in Amsterdam, Holland. Photograph by Zzzak.

unnaturalist: If you’re in Chicago, don’t miss this! And…it’s free! This groundbreaking exhibition showcases over one thousand artworks and other artifacts from the personal collection of Chicago-based collector Richard Harris. Amassed over several decades, Harris’s collection explores the iconography of death across cultures and traditions spanning nearly six thousand years, and includes works by some of the greatest artists of our time. Featuring paintings from the Thirty Years War (Jaques Callot -17th century) through the present day. Also a significant exhibit featuring non-war-related death iconography from thousands of years ago, through the 20th century. Check it out if you’re in the area!

unnaturalist:

If you’re in Chicago, don’t miss this! And…it’s free!

This groundbreaking exhibition showcases over one thousand artworks and other artifacts from the personal collection of Chicago-based collector Richard Harris. Amassed over several decades, Harris’s collection explores the iconography of death across cultures and traditions spanning nearly six thousand years, and includes works by some of the greatest artists of our time.

Featuring paintings from the Thirty Years War (Jaques Callot -17th century) through the present day. Also a significant exhibit featuring non-war-related death iconography from thousands of years ago, through the 20th century.

Check it out if you’re in the area!

Hi! I'm at BTEC Medical Science A-Level student and really enjoy your blog. I have even showed some of it to the rest of my class! Have you ever been o the Hunterian Museum in the Royal college of Surgeons, in London? It's a fantastic collection of William Hunter's gatherings, including hairy babies and an irish giant! I really recommend it to anyone with a fascination in medical science :) — Asked by mrdobble

Thanks! I know my blog isn’t always the cream of the crop, but when I know people have used my content (images or otherwise) while teaching anatomy, entomology, medical greek & latin, and just to show their friends and colleagues, that’s one of the things that keeps me wanting to continue to collect and read interesting research and great images for the blog. :3

I haven’t been to any medical museums or exhibits in the UK yet. Really, the longest I’ve been in London is during some epic layovers at Heathrow. In Europe, most of where I’ve been has focused on purely cultural aspects of history, but I did manage to drag my friends through one of the very good “History of Sex”  travelling exhibits that was in Prague at the same time as us. :D It was from Greek society - the Regency, ended shortly before 1800 and was only Western culture, but was very thorough on what it covered.

I have a solid list of museums I want to visit over in Europe, but I didn’t know William Hunter’s collections had their own showcase museum! He was a great anatomist and is definitely on my list.

sievetronix

Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer Curator of the Natural History museum in East London, South Africa, Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer was the first person to discover (in a meaningful way) that the coelacanth wasn’t extinct, but was simply the vile-tasting “gombessa” that had been thrown away for decades. While collecting specimens and samples for the East London museum, Ms. Latimer let it be known to the local fishermen that she was highly interested in any “unusual” or rare fish that they might haul aboard. In 1938, Capt. Henrik Goosen phoned her to come down to the dock, where she encountered a five-foot long oddity, which she describes: “I picked away at the layers of slime to reveal the most beautiful fish I had ever seen. It was five foot[feet] long, a pale mauvy blue with faint flecks of whitish spots; it had an iridescent silver-blue-green sheen all over. It was covered in hard scales, and it had four limb-like fins and a strange puppy dog tail.” She hauled it back to the museum in a taxi (which she notes the cabbie was none too happy about, even when she gave a generous tip - I can’t imagine any taxi driver wanting fish slime on their seats!), and discovered that she could not find the fish in any of the books available to her. She was eager to preserve the specimen, and since the museum had no preservation facilities, she (in another taxi) took it down to the morgue, which wouldn’t have it. She then attempted to contact James [JLB] Smith at Rhodes, but he was out on holiday. In the end, knowing that it could possibly end up being of dubious scientific value, she reluctantly ended up having the fish skinned and taxidermied. Luckily, the external anatomy of the coelacanth is so different from anything else in the sea, JLB Smith was able to positively identify the specimen: “There was not a shadow of a doubt,” he said. “It could have been one of those creatures of 200 million years ago come alive again.” Still, the taxidermy work had removed both the gill plates and the ossicles, which were needed for absolute confirmation that this was the fish of fossils. Now known as Latimeria chalumnae after his friend and the river it was discovered in, the discovery was announced to much excitement in the scientific community and local population. The fact that there was no complete positive proof that this fish was the fish of fossils still made many icthyologists doubtful about the specimen, but JLB Smith was absolutely determined to find proof of its identity. And thus began the search for the Lazarus fish… The Search Beneath the Sea: The Story of the Coelacanth. J. L. B. Smith, 1956.

Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer

Curator of the Natural History museum in East London, South Africa, Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer was the first person to discover (in a meaningful way) that the coelacanth wasn’t extinct, but was simply the vile-tasting “gombessa” that had been thrown away for decades.

While collecting specimens and samples for the East London museum, Ms. Latimer let it be known to the local fishermen that she was highly interested in any “unusual” or rare fish that they might haul aboard. In 1938, Capt. Henrik Goosen phoned her to come down to the dock, where she encountered a five-foot long oddity, which she describes:

“I picked away at the layers of slime to reveal the most beautiful fish I had ever seen. It was five foot[feet] long, a pale mauvy blue with faint flecks of whitish spots; it had an iridescent silver-blue-green sheen all over. It was covered in hard scales, and it had four limb-like fins and a strange puppy dog tail.”

She hauled it back to the museum in a taxi (which she notes the cabbie was none too happy about, even when she gave a generous tip - I can’t imagine any taxi driver wanting fish slime on their seats!), and discovered that she could not find the fish in any of the books available to her. She was eager to preserve the specimen, and since the museum had no preservation facilities, she (in another taxi) took it down to the morgue, which wouldn’t have it. She then attempted to contact James [JLB] Smith at Rhodes, but he was out on holiday.

In the end, knowing that it could possibly end up being of dubious scientific value, she reluctantly ended up having the fish skinned and taxidermied. Luckily, the external anatomy of the coelacanth is so different from anything else in the sea, JLB Smith was able to positively identify the specimen:

“There was not a shadow of a doubt,” he said. “It could have been one of those creatures of 200 million years ago come alive again.”

Still, the taxidermy work had removed both the gill plates and the ossicles, which were needed for absolute confirmation that this was the fish of fossils. Now known as Latimeria chalumnae after his friend and the river it was discovered in, the discovery was announced to much excitement in the scientific community and local population. The fact that there was no complete positive proof that this fish was the fish of fossils still made many icthyologists doubtful about the specimen, but JLB Smith was absolutely determined to find proof of its identity.

And thus began the search for the Lazarus fish…

The Search Beneath the Sea: The Story of the Coelacanth. J. L. B. Smith, 1956.

The Old Wife fish (Enoplosus armatus), taken by Rontgen ray process The “Old Wife” is a saltwater fish, and was given its rather derogatory colloquial name by the screeching sound it makes by grinding its teeth together after being caught. It’s supposedly akin to nails on a chalkboard. Illustrated Handbook. Aquarium, Picture Salon, Cyclorama, Museum, and Technological Collections. Compiled by James E. Sherrard.

The Old Wife fish (Enoplosus armatus), taken by Rontgen ray process

The “Old Wife” is a saltwater fish, and was given its rather derogatory colloquial name by the screeching sound it makes by grinding its teeth together after being caught. It’s supposedly akin to nails on a chalkboard.

Illustrated Handbook. Aquarium, Picture Salon, Cyclorama, Museum, and Technological Collections. Compiled by James E. Sherrard.

Megatherium americanum - The Giant Ground Sloth

The skeleton of Megatherium set up in the London Natural History Museum, and a depiction of a possibility of Megatherium behavior in life.

Though the population was already decreasing when the first humans arrived in South America, the disappearance of the Giant Sloth was helped along by the new immigrants. Using mammoth-hunting skills, this large and lumbering creature was an ideal kill for a human tribe. It was one of the many Pleistocene megafauna that went extinct during the Quaternary extinctions.

Extinct monsters. H. N. Hutchinson, 1896.

Mastodon Skeleton The word “mastodon” comes from the Greek roots that translate to “breast [nipple] tooth”. It refers to the nipple-like projections on the mastodon’s teeth, making its dentition pointier, and far more suited to eating leaves from bushes and trees, rather than grass (which the elephant ancestors and mammoths ate). Animals that primarily eat foliage are known as “browsers”, while animals that primarily eat grass and ground plants are “grazers”. Principles of Zoology: Touching the Structure, Development, Distribution, and Natural Arrangement of the Races of Animals. Louis Agassiz and A. A. Gould, 1851. So what’s this dapper gentleman saying to his most proper lady?

Mastodon Skeleton

The word “mastodon” comes from the Greek roots that translate to “breast [nipple] tooth”. It refers to the nipple-like projections on the mastodon’s teeth, making its dentition pointier, and far more suited to eating leaves from bushes and trees, rather than grass (which the elephant ancestors and mammoths ate). Animals that primarily eat foliage are known as “browsers”, while animals that primarily eat grass and ground plants are “grazers”.

Principles of Zoology: Touching the Structure, Development, Distribution, and Natural Arrangement of the Races of Animals. Louis Agassiz and A. A. Gould, 1851.

So what’s this dapper gentleman saying to his most proper lady?

centuriespast: Bell, William H. (attributed to)American (1830-1910)Specimen No. 2749. Right Humerus and Elbow, Necrosis of the Entire Humerus Following Gunshot Fracture of the Epiphysisca. 1863Photograph Amherst College

centuriespast:

Bell, William H. (attributed to)
American (1830-1910)
Specimen No. 2749. Right Humerus and Elbow, Necrosis of the Entire Humerus Following Gunshot Fracture of the Epiphysis
ca. 1863
Photograph

Amherst College

centuriespast

Skeleton of small child This skeleton is noted to display the characteristics of a severe case of spina bifida, without ancephaly, but with hydrocephalus.  From a museum collection - skeleton from the mid/late 19th century China.

Skeleton of small child

This skeleton is noted to display the characteristics of a severe case of spina bifida, without ancephaly, but with hydrocephalus. 

From a museum collection - skeleton from the mid/late 19th century China.

One of the many excellent wax anatomical sculptures found at La Specola, in Italy. The museum was inaugurated in 1775, and until the early-mid 19th century, it was the only scientific museum open to the public. The wax models of both human and animal anatomy from the 18th century have been a central figure in the museum since its inception, but there are a lot of other very interesting historical artifacts there. Some of the museum collection pieces can even be definitively traced back to the Medici family.

One of the many excellent wax anatomical sculptures found at La Specola, in Italy.

The museum was inaugurated in 1775, and until the early-mid 19th century, it was the only scientific museum open to the public. The wax models of both human and animal anatomy from the 18th century have been a central figure in the museum since its inception, but there are a lot of other very interesting historical artifacts there. Some of the museum collection pieces can even be definitively traced back to the Medici family.

fruitjoose

Stuffed Quagga at the London Natural History Museum This is one of 23 skins/stuffed Quagga still in existence. There were 24, but the one kept at a museum in Kaliningrad, Germany, was destroyed during WWII. Several of the specimens, including this one, have had their DNA sampled and analyzed. From this analysis, it’s been determined that the quagga and plains zebra species diverged between 120,000 and 290,000 years ago.

Stuffed Quagga at the London Natural History Museum

This is one of 23 skins/stuffed Quagga still in existence. There were 24, but the one kept at a museum in Kaliningrad, Germany, was destroyed during WWII. Several of the specimens, including this one, have had their DNA sampled and analyzed. From this analysis, it’s been determined that the quagga and plains zebra species diverged between 120,000 and 290,000 years ago.