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The frontispeice of the Canon of Medicine

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The Canon of Medicine

Ibn Sina’s hugely influential overview of eleventh century medical knowledge and practice.

An illustration of a plant with red berries from the Herbarium

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Medieval Herbarium

A richly illustrated medieval herbal from the Abbey of Bury St Edmunds.

Uroscopy diagram showing shapes in a circle

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Medieval Uroscopy

An illustrated medieval guide to using the patient’s urine to determine imbalances of the humours.

The frontispiece of the Pharmacopoeia Londis

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Pharmacopoeia Londinensis

The 1632 edition of the definitive manual of pharmacy from the Royal College of Physicians.

A drawing of a bug in microscopic detail by Robert Hooke

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Micrographia

Robert Hooke’s ground-breaking work on microscopic observations of the natural world.

The frontispeice of The Pisse Prophet

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The Pisse Prophet

Thomas Brain’s powerfully worded seventeenth century tirade against quackery.

Map of central London showing cholera cases

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Communication of Cholera

John Snow’s 1849 article identifying contaminated drinking water as the cause of Cholera.

Black and white portrait photograph of Joseph Lister

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The Antiseptic System

Joseph Lister’s presentation of evidence that the use of antiseptic reduces mortality.

Opening of a pamphlet announcing the introduction of the NHS

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The New NHS

1948 pamphlet giving advice about services available from the new National Health Service.

A typed form that includes handwritten names and dates of a patient recommended to St George's Hospital

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A letter to recommend

A letter to recommend a patient for admittance to St George’s Hospital London, Signed by the Duke of Wellington, one of the financial supporters of the hospital known as subscribers.

A typed notice requiring a patient take a vaccine

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Requirement of vaccination

1897 notice given to parents at the registration of the birth of their child informing them of the requirement to vaccinate their child against smallpox with a registered vaccinator.

Polio in bold type on an orange background

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Polio vaccination poster

1958 British national polio vaccination campaign poster encouraging parents to have their children vaccinated via their local NHS services.