Archaeological evidence for 18th-century medical practice in the Old Town of Edinburgh: excavations at 13 Infirmary Street and Surgeons' Square
Keyword(s):
Human Skeletons, Schools, Disarticulated Bones, Human Bones, Postmortem Tooth
Human Skeletons, Schools, Disarticulated Bones, Human Bones, Postmortem Tooth
Period(s):
1988, Eighteenth Century
1988, Eighteenth Century
Abstract
Articulated human skeletons and disarticulated bones recovered in 1993 from excavations in the area of the former Lady Yester's Kirkyard showed clear evidence of post-mortem dissection. They are identified as the `unclaimed' dead buried by the Royal Infirmary in the second half of the eighteenth century. There was evidence for post-mortem tooth removal from all the dentitions recovered during the excavation, probably for the manufacture of sets of false teeth. A further assemblage of human bones, found in 1988 adjacent to eighteenth/nineteenth-century anatomy schools formed part of a teaching collection from the schools.
Downloads
Download data is not yet available.
Published
30-11-1997
How to Cite
Henderson, D., Collard, M., & Johnston, D. (1997). Archaeological evidence for 18th-century medical practice in the Old Town of Edinburgh: excavations at 13 Infirmary Street and Surgeons’ Square. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, 126, 929-941. Retrieved from http://journals.socantscot.org/index.php/psas/article/view/9955
Issue
Section
Articles