Spring 2009 Events at the Hunterian Museum
Family Talks and Workshops at London's Royal College of Surgeons
Feb 4, 2009
London has at least 20 museums of medicine. One of the most interesting is the Hunterian Museum, established in 1813 by surgeon John Hunter (1728-1793) as the museum of the Royal College of Surgeons. The museum is offering a very varied programme of events for children and adults from February to June 2009.
Events for Children
- Jones the Bones - 17th February 2009 at 12 noon and 3.30 pm, 19th February 2009 at 2.00 pm and 3.30 pm. This event is for children from 6-12 years of age, although adults may attend. Jones the Bones will answer questions about the human body such as what happens when we breathe or how the body digests food.
Events for Adults
The following events are strictly for adults. They feature four authors who have published books exploring the seamier side of Georgian London.
- The surgeon, the countess, her husband and his lover: 19th March 2009, 7 pm. Wendy Moore will discuss her new book Wedlock: How Georgian Britain's Worst Husband Met his Match.
- In armour complete – or not: 23rd April 2009, 7 pm. The actor and historian Ian Kelly, author of biographies of Giacomo Casanova and Beau Brummell, will discuss the sexual exploits of the theatrical world of 18th-century Europe.
- Making sex electric: Dr James Graham and his ‘Celestial Bed’: 20th May 2009, 7 pm. Authoress Lydia Syson will discuss her new book. Dr James Graham, Britain's first sex therapist proposed strange sex therapies including an electric bed which used mind-altering gases and musical automata.
- The scandalous Worsleys: sex and celebrity divorce in the 18th century: 11th June 2009, 7 pm. This talk will be led by Hallie Rubenhold, authoress of Lady Worsley's Whim. Lady Worsley, wife of Sir Richard Worsley, is reputed to have had 27 lovers and was at the centre of a huge scandal in 1782.
One-Day Workshop - Darwin's London
- Darwin’s London: 16th May 2009, 10 am-6 pm. This workshop will explore Charles Darwin's influence on the development of London and its citizens. The workshop will include visits to the Grant Museum of Zoology (the site of Darwin's London home at University College London) and the Hunterian Museum.
Lunchtime Talks - Surgery through the Ages
The Museum is also hosting a series of lunchtime lectures entitled Surgery through the Ages.
- Medicine with a mission: suffragettes as army surgeons: 5th March 2009, 1 pm. The work of a group of British female doctors and nurses who organised an army hospital in London during World War I is explored by historian Jennian F Geddes.
- Romantic surgery, radical politics and revolutionary bodysnatching: 30th April 2009, 1 pm. The surgeon Astley Cooper (1768-1841) is commemorated in St Paul's Cathedral. Medical historian Druin Burch will explore his life and achievements.
- Leeches and lancets in the American colonies: 9th June 2009, 1 pm. Historian Richard Kennedy will look at how doctors in the American colonies were trained during the 18th century and what common diseases they treated. The talk will be illustrated with medical instruments of the period.
Admission to the museum is free but places at all events, for which there is a small charge, must be pre-booked. Further details can be obtained from the Hunterian Museum.
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