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Exhibitions: National Museum of Health and Medicine (Washington, D.C.) 

Press release forwarded to STHC-L from H-SCI-MED-TECH.

Russell Johnson


--- Begin Forwarded Message ---
Date: Mon, 18 Jun 2001 23:31:41 -0400
From: "Phillip Thurtle, H-SCI-MED-TECH" 
Subject: FYI: NATIONAL MUSEUM OF HEALTH AND MEDICINE SETS EXHIBITS
Sender: "H-NET List on the History of Science, Medicine, and 
Technology" 
From: HAWK@afip.osd.mil


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 14, 2001
Contact: Steven Solomon, 202-782-2672, solomons@afip.osd.mil
Rachel Coker, 202-782-2671, cokerr@afip.osd.mil

NATIONAL MUSEUM OF HEALTH AND MEDICINE SETS EXHIBITS
WASHINGTON - Among the most popular anatomical specimens and 
historical artifacts on display at the National Museum of Health and 
Medicine are those related to President Abraham Lincoln. These include 
the bullet that ended his life, the probe used to locate the bullet, 
the blood-stained cuffs from the museum surgeon who attended the 
autopsy, and bone fragments from Lincoln's skull. The collection also 
includes a pencil drawing of the deathbed scene made by the museum's 
medical illustrator immediately after the removal of Lincoln's body 
from the house in which he died. Casts of Lincoln's face and hands that 
were made when Lincoln finished his presidential campaign in 1860 are 
also on display. Also on exhibit are:

"To Bind Up the Nation's Wounds: Medicine During the Civil War" 
shows Civil War medicine through the eyes of battlefield surgeons and 
the stories of Union and Confederate sick and wounded. Among items on 
display are the amputated leg bones of Maj. Gen. Daniel E. Sickles, the 
3rd Army Corps commander who was wounded at Gettysburg on July 2, 1863 
and sent the leg to the museum in a coffin-shaped box bearing a 
visiting card that read: "With the compliments of Major General D.E.S." 
Permanent.

"Human Body, Human Being" displays preserved specimens from the major  
body systems and medical artifacts and instruments important in the 
development of medicine and today's modern hospitals. Visitors can 
compare a smoker's lung to a coal miner's lung, touch the inside of a 
stomach, view skeletons and skulls and a brain still attached to a 
spinal cord suspended in formaldehyde. There are also live leeches, a 
display of kidney stones,  and a hairball removed from a 12-year-old 
girl. The exhibit includes mechanical and interactive video 
installations, such as the Visible Human Project in which cross 
sections of the human body can be examined at a computer station. 
Permanent.

"Evolution of the Microscope" displays items from the world's largest  
and most representative collection in tracing the development of the 
basic tool of the bioscientist over the last 400 years. The exhibit 
includes the 17th-century, handcrafted, leather and gold-tooled 
microscope used by  Robert Hooke in the preparation of "Micrographia," 
one of the first books ever written about observations made through a 
microscope. Permanent.

"Living in a World With AIDS" uses text, interactive displays, medical 
instruments, and photographs to explore the AIDS health crisis, 
featuring the personal narrative of an AIDS victim. Running 
indefinitely.

"Medicine and Morality: A History of Syphilis and Gonorrhea" recounts 
social and medical responses to sexually transmitted diseases using 
photographs, posters, and instruments. Running indefinitely.

"From Single Cells... Human Reproduction, Growth and Development" 
traces growth and development of the embryo and fetus with specimens 
that show the stages of human development before and after birth. 
Running indefinitely.

"History of the National Museum of Health and Medicine, AFIP" tells 
the story of the museum that opened in 1862 as the Army Medical Museum, 
was housed in some of Washington's most historic and memorable 
locations, including Ford's Theatre, and is remembered by many 
Washingtonians when it was located on the Mall until the late 1960s. 
Running indefinitely.

"Growing Up in Washington" is an exhibit of photos and reminiscences 
that recall museum experiences spanning the past 140 years, featuring  
memories of childhood visits. Running indefinitely.

"Research Matters: Environmental and Toxicological Effects of 
Arsenic," highlights the developing science of medical geology used by 
the museum's parent organization, the Armed Forces Institute of 
Pathology, to study health problems associated with exposure to toxic 
metals and metalloids such as arsenic. Running indefinitely.

"Blood, Sweat, and Saline: Combat Medicine in the Korean Conflict," 
featuring an artificial kidney machine used in the field and the actual 
eyeglasses used by the character Radar O'Reilly on television's 
M*A*S*H, makes the story of medicine during the Korean War come to life 
through photographs and the personal recollections of medics, patients, 
and  military personnel. Running indefinitely.

"The Changing Face of Women's Health" features interactive and  
multi-media techniques, companion programs, and educator outreach 
materials devoted exclusively to women's health issues. Through Aug. 31.

The National Museum of Health and Medicine, founded as the Army 
Medical Museum in 1862 to study and improve medical conditions during 
the American Civil War, is an element of the Armed Forces Institute of 
Pathology. Open daily except Dec. 25 from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., the 
museum is located at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, 6900 Georgia Ave. 
and Elder Street, NW, Washington, D.C. Public telephone number is 
202-782-2200 and the web site is
www.natmedmuse.afip.org. 
Admission and parking are free.
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