StumbleUpon | diabolus's blog posts

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Sun, 13 Sep 2009 19:02:55 -0700

http://diabolus.stumbleupon.com/review/32922289/

Mon, 18 May 2009 20:43:28 -0700

Some vintage medical instruments and accessories I picked up at an auction this weekend.

Lot of bleeding cups dating from the early 1800s to early 1900s:

A mahogany medical kit from about the mid-1800s. Missing a few things, but nice overall:

A few small medical kits, early 1900s:

An awesome steel trephine kit with extra attachments, from about 1920 or so:

A DeZeng cast iron and brass eye examination tool from 1909:

Four blood letting scarificators from the mid/late 1800s:

http://diabolus.stumbleupon.com/review/26932755/

Tue, 28 Oct 2008 18:47:25 -0700

Newest addition to my family.

http://diabolus.stumbleupon.com/review/25573130/

Fri, 19 Sep 2008 06:40:40 -0700

Death of a King

King William I of England was very heavy-set, and at age 60 he was injured when his horse jostled, walking on a hot coal left after burning a town during a siege. William's intestines were ruptured, and he suffered a slow, painful death from peritonitis. It was at the end of a hot summer, there was no refrigeration, and the funeral had to wait until nobles and luminaries had traveled to the church for the funeral. And so his body swelled beyond the size of the coffin that had been made. According to the Oxford Illustrated History of Britain:

On 9 September 1087, William I died. His body was carried to his great church of St. Stephen at Caen. Towards the end of his life he had grown very fat, and when the attendants tried to force the body into the stone sarcophagus, it burst, filling the church with a foul smell. It was an unfortunate ending to the career of an unusually fortunate and competent king.

A slightly more detailed account from Panati (1999) includes:

From postmortem decay the abscess had turgidly putrefied, bloating the corpse and expanding its girth. A group of bishops applied pressure on the king's abdomen to force the body downward (in the coffin) but it moved only inches; the lid still would not shut. Again they pushed, and the abdominal wall, already under intense internal pressure, burst. Pus and putrefaction drenched the king's death garb and seeped throughout the coffin. The stench so overpowered chapel mourners that, hands to noses, many raced for the doors.

http://diabolus.stumbleupon.com/review/22639590/

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 10:16:22 -0700

On October 22, 1986, at 4:44 PM, while Jane Dornacker (formerly of the rock group Leila and the Snakes) was giving one of the station's N-Copter traffic reports during the Joey Reynolds Radio show on WNBC Radio in New York City, the helicopter she was reporting from plunged into the Hudson River from an altitude of roughly 75 feet. On her final radio broadcast she was giving a report of an accident involving a tractor trailer and a car as well as a car fire. Dornacker was starting her report for incoming New Jersey traffic when the helicopter stalled.

The helicopter nosedived, struck the top of a chain link fence at a river pier, crashed into the Hudson River and sank in 15 to 20 feet of water. Both occupants were trapped for nearly 10-15 minutes before help arrived. Jane Dornacker died on her way to Saint Vincent's Hospital.

Listen to Jane's final live broadcast: .wav audio file or YouTube Video

Related link: Onstage Deaths

http://diabolus.stumbleupon.com/review/20476010/

Fri, 25 Apr 2008 09:27:49 -0700

'Twas in the middle of the night,
To sleep young William tried,
When Mary�s ghost came stealing in,
And stood at his bed-side.

O William dear! O William dear!
My rest eternal ceases;
Alas! my everlasting peace
Is broken into pieces.

I thought the last of all my cares
Would end with my last minute;
But tho� I went to my long home
I didn�t stay long in it.

The body-snatchers they have come,
And made a snatch at me;
It�s very hard them kind of men
Won�t let a body be!

You thought that I was buried deep
Quite decent like and chary,
But from her grave in Mary-bone
They�ve come and boned your Mary.

The arm that used to take your arm
Is took to Dr. Vyse;
And both my legs are gone to walk
The hospital at Guy�s.

I vow�d that you should have my hand,
But fate gives us denial;
You�ll find it there, at Dr. Bell�s
In spirits and a phial.

As for my feet, the little feet
You used to call so pretty,
There�s one, I know, in Bedford Row,
The t�other�s in the city.

I can�t tell where my head is gone,
But Doctor Carpue can:
As for my trunk, it�s all pack�d up
To go by Pickford�s van.

I wished you�d go to Mr. P.
And save me such a ride;
I don�t half like the outside place,
They�ve took for my inside.

The cock it crows - I must begone!
My William we must part!
But I�ll be yours in death, altho�
Sir Astley has my heart.

Don�t go to weep upon my grave,
And think that there I be;
They haven�t left an atom there
Of my anatomie.

http://diabolus.stumbleupon.com/review/19074802/

Sun, 23 Mar 2008 08:51:27 -0700

Le Cochon Danseur

http://diabolus.stumbleupon.com/review/18943460/

Wed, 19 Mar 2008 11:50:32 -0700

Atlas of Human Anatomy and Surgery

This massive hardcover book (over 19" high, 700+ pages, shipping weight of 19 lbs!) is highly recommended for anyone interested in medical history or human anatomy. There are tons of full-page, beautiful medical drawings and foldouts from the 1800s, including medical tools and surgical procedures. It's quite amazing.

The retail price of $200 is more than fair, however, Amazon is offering it for $74.00 off for a limited time. In a few years this book will be selling at 3x its current retail price, so I recommend picking one up now.

http://diabolus.stumbleupon.com/review/5209697/

Mon, 14 Aug 2006 10:03:13 -0700

My site's MySpace page. Go ahead and add me.
I am a massive friend whore and will add you back no matter how boring and friendless you are!

http://diabolus.stumbleupon.com/review/4820136/

Thu, 13 Jul 2006 20:01:11 -0700

I beat cancer! (by cancer I mean children)