Save Outdoor Sculpture, West Virginia survey, 1992.
Index of American Sculpture, University of Delaware, 1985
Summary:
The eight reliefs depict important developments and personages in the history of medicine, dentistry, nursing and pharmacy -- 16 milestones are depicted. The first relief panel depicts Hippocrates (father of medicine), administering to a seated woman, and below them, Aristotle, seated at a table examining a human skull. On the table are two animal skulls. The second relief panel illustrates the scriptural apothecary from Exodus (30:25). The scene includes a bearded, robed man seated at a table, using a mortar and pestle; the scene below depicts two female figures, one of whom is bathing, the other stands beside her with towel, representative of the rules of hygiene as set forth in the Old Testament.
The third relief panel depicts William Harvey discovering the circulation of blood; and in the lower scene, Rev. Stephen Hales using a horse to make the first measurement of blood pressure. The fourth relief panel depicts Benevenutus Grassus conducting his studies on the structure of the eye; the lower scene shows a deaconess in a medieval hospital caring for a man in bed.
The fifth relief panel illustrates Ephraim McDowell (1771-1830) removing an ovarian tumor; and in the lower scene, Ignaz Semmelweis (1818-1865), known for instituting sterilization methods in obstetrics. The sixth relief panel is a tribute to Andreas Vesalius (1515-1564) and depicts a medical dissection during the Renaissance; and in the lower scene, a man doing an anatomical sketch.
The seventh panel depicts William Beaumont (1785-1853) studying human digestion through the open stomach wound of Alexis St. Martin; and, in the lower scene, Wilhelm Roentgen (1845-1923), implementing the xray in 1895, standing above a reclining male patient. The eigth relief panel depicts Pierre Fauchard (1678-1761), founder of modern dentistry, examing a patient; and in the lower scene, Louis Pasteur, innoculating a dog with a rabies vaccine.
