CAVEAT: Not all collector items are βprettyβ or aesthetically pleasing. Some are historically significant and not necessarily intended for display. Todayβs highlight may not be for everyone.
WHAT: Two Revolutionary War field amputation kits owned and used by early surgeon John Warren sold early this month at RR Auctions in Boston for $104,147. Warren was a noted army surgeon with a practice in Salem, Massachusetts. In 1792, he became a founder of Harvard Medical School and the schoolβs first professor of anatomy and surgery.
From 1776 to 1777, Warren followed George Washingtonβs troops through the Battles of Trenton, Long Island and Princeton. He also saw action in the Battles of Lexington and Concord. You know that kits used in battle by such an august figure are significant.
MORE: War was brutal, and sterilization was unknown. A musket ball could shatter limbs, and amputation was common. The Continental Army did not issue tools, so surgeons had to supply their own. As a result, Warrenβs kits show heavy use.
Contents of the kits shown with this column include bullet and tissue forceps, a tourniquet, a metacarpal saw, an extra blade for a large amputation saw, an amputation saw and knife, a saw adjustor and surgical scissors. One kit has an interior fitted for some of the instruments.
SMART COLLECTORS KNOW: Antique medical instruments are widely collected, and most collectors are in related professions. Lab and medical equipment has a wider public, with steel furniture, antique microscopes and medical lighting popular for decorative use.
HOT TIP: The kits were originally sold by Harvard University during a warehouse sale.
BOTTOM LINE: Warrenβs kits are important in the study of medical history, as well as the study of military history.
