In Danish, we have an old saying that goes like this: "Shoemaker, stay with your trade!" If James Gillingham (1839–1924) had done so he would not have been able to help William Singleton when he lost an arm in a weird accident in connection with the celebrations of the wedding of the future King Edward VII and the Danish princess, Alexandra. However, being a shoemaker, must have taught him what he needed to know about this very young art of making prosthetics in leather. It brought him fame, and he and his works is a main subject in the museum of Chad, situated in Somerset, where he lived and worked.
He started his new trade in 1863, and from then on that was what he did for a living. As it is, he was an absolute artist, making beautiful and usable artificial limbs. Of course, he also was a pioneer, and the medical journal "The Lancet" complimented him for his work in 1868. They called his artificial limbs, which for the most part, took 10 days to make, "strong, light, and durable". Also, they wrote that they were "easy wearing and not likely to get out of repair; simple in construction, and as beautiful as life in appearance."
From the Chard Museum
Modern day prosthetics seem to accept that the disfiguring aspects of being an amputee isn't hidden or camouflaged. Actually, nowadays one often sees artificial legs or arms looking like robotic limbs with no skin like coverings. They are all steel-constructions and don't look like natural limbs. To me, it almost looks like as if this kind of artificial limbs have become a trend. Anyway, I doubt it shall go on forever, as I suppose people will want to look as little conspicuous as possible: They will want to blend in, so to speak.
Maybe the future will bring much more advanced prosthetics. I shouldn't wonder if the experts have started to work on something that might be entirely new limbs, integrated with the body, yes, sort of "melting together with it". That might have been good for this little, Victorian girl:
Victorian prosthetic made by James Gillingham (1839–1924). Photos circa 1880s-1900s.
https://www.dearrailway.in/artificial-limbs-center/
https://steelbone.co.uk/types-of-prosthetic-limbs-on-the-nhs-for-amputees/
Wikipedia
No comments:
Post a Comment