Slideshow: Medical history in art

Monday, May 08, 2006

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Multimedia presentation by Alyssa Cwanger
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The French artist Jules Adler was seeking fame and a healthy commission when he painted "Transfusion of a Goat's Blood" in 1892 for the physician Simon Bernheim. According to Louise Lippincott,the curator of fine arts for the Carnegie Museum of Art, Adler also recorded an important moment in medical history.

She says scientists began attempting human-animal transfusions in the 15th century. The practice ended only with the discovery of blood types in 1901. In the meantime, unfortunate human guinea pigs, such as the woman in Adler's painting, made the ultimate sacrifice in the name of medical science.

In addition to narrating this slideshow, Ms. Lippincott offered these additional comments on humans, animals, transfusion and art:

The choice of a woman to receive the transfusion in Adler's painting tells us a lot about Victorian science and values.

The painting is a barometer of the change in how humans view their relationship to the animal kingdom.