The Art of Bleeding

Scary hospital clowns, bizarre devices, and cadaver lab pix are just some of the medically themed gems you can turn up while perusing the photos archives of the National Museum of Health & Medicine and the Library of Congress.

Violet wand use as physical therapy in military hospital. From the Flickr set of the Otis Historical Archives of the National Museum of Health & Medicine.

Dissection room, American University of Beirut, Lebanon. Circa 1936. Can’t you smell the formaldehyde? (Library of Congress)

Apparatus for measuring extension-flexion of the wrist. World War I. From the Flickr set of the Otis Historical Archives of the National Museum of Health & Medicine.

Children’s Hospital Circus. Washington, D.C., 1923.   How many children do you see smiling in this picture? (Library of Congress)