Obstétrique

1840 · ST20999 — Paris: Bechet jeune et Labé 1840. Second Edition. 447 x 303 mm. 17 1/2 x 12". Plate volume only without the text as frequently. <br/> Modern half cinnabar buckram over marbled boards smooth spine with black morocco label. Original paper covers bound in at front and back. WITH 81 SOMETIMES MEMORABLE ANATOMICAL PLATES engraved by Forestier and Couché fils after drawings by Antoine Chazal. Corners a bit bumped title page and first plate a bit foxed just a hint of foxing elsewhere otherwise quite fine--the plates clean fresh and bright and the binding showing little significant wear.<br/> <br/> Engraved to accompany a treatise on pregnancy and childbirth by the most eminent French obstetrician of the time the engravings here in Waller's words are "splendid" and "executed with the utmost accuracy." "Heirs of Hippocrates" observes that these plates "cover virtually every phase of childbirth including pelvic deformities pelvimetry transverse presentations Caesarean section the use of forceps and even a section on infant feeding and lactation." There is also a demure depiction of a doctor's discreet "touch only" examination of a standing clothed woman which is surely one of the most memorable images in the literature. Considered one of the best men in his field Jacques-Pierre Maygrier 1771-1835 studied with Ambrose du Bois the doctor who attended Empress Marie Louise at the birth of Napoleon's son and heir. In addition to practicing at Cochin hospital and the Hotel-Dieu Maygrier taught courses in anatomy and physiology and succeeded Jean-Louis Baudelocque as Chair of the department of obstetrics at the Maternité de Port Royal the first specialized medical chair in France. The illustrations here are the work of Antoine Chazal 1793-1854 best known for his botanical paintings but also a renowned anatomical engraver illustrating works that included Cruveilhier's classic "Anatomie Pathologique du Corps Humain." The images here are much more artful than technical with an appropriate softness and sympathy that encourage a strong connection between the viewer and the mothers and children who are sometimes depicted in intimate settings. Bechet j[eun]e et Labé unknown