Surgical Set
date: label: date made
content: 1862-1865
name: label: maker
content: Hermann Hernstein & Son
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: This wooden surgical case with brass fittings has three main compartments, one of which is a tray that lifts out from the lower case. The interior is lined with purple velvet, and molded so that each instrument has its own compartment. The exterior of the lid has an oval escutcheon marked “U.S.A. HOSP. DEPT.” and “H. Hernstein and Son / 393 Broadway, New York.” The set includes 45 instruments, three of which are not original to the set. At least six instruments are missing, including four knives and a bandage scissors.
label: Description (Brief)
content: During the Civil War the United States Army contracted with several surgical instrument makers, including Herman Hernstein to provide surgical sets for the Union troops.
label: Description (Brief)
content: As a young boy in Germany Hermann Hernstein (b. 1817) was apprenticed to a surgical instrument maker. He came to the United States in 1841, and established his own shop in New York soon thereafter.
label: Description (Brief)
content: According to Edmonson much of Hernstein’s inventory was imported from Europe.
label: Description
content: Surgical kits were not required on merchant vessels, but the larger and better-equipped ships often carried them. These were used for everything from pulling teeth to the amputation of limbs, and everything in between. Like the medicine chests, these kits too were often sold with simple pamphlets, with instructions and diagrams on how to use them in emergencies. The captain or first mate most commonly carried out any needed procedures.
place: label: place made
content: United States: New York, New York City
topic: label: Subject
content: Surgery
label: related event
content: Civil War and Reconstruction
setName: label: See more items in
content: Medicine and Science: Medicine
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content: Health & Medicine
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content: Cultures & Communities
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content: Work
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content: Industry & Manufacturing
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content: Natural Resources
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content: Transportation
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content: Civil War Surgical Sets
label: Exhibition
content: On the Water
label: Exhibition Location
content: National Museum of American History
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gustave and Phyllis Sokol
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1977.1103.01
label: accession number
content: 1977.1103
label: catalog number
content: 1977.1103.01
objectType: label: Object Name
content: case
label: Object Name
content: surgical set
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: wood (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: metal (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 3 1/2 in x 17 1/4 in x 7 1/2 in; 8.89 cm x 43.815 cm x 19.05 cm