Teaching watercolor of man with surgically opened chest, 1848-1854
Description:
Teaching watercolor of man from head to chest. Man's skin is removed from neck to mid-chest revealing organs, muscles, and veins underneath. Man's head and eyes are turned to the left, leaving only right side of face and right ear visible. Mouth is slightly open. Watercolor is framed in green sewn textile, with metal grommets in each of the four corners.
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Notes:
Henry Jacob Bigelow employed artist Oscar Wallis exclusively from 1848 - 1854 to paint a series of large teaching watercolors to illustrate Bigelow's lectures at Harvard Medical School. Wallis painted the teaching diagrams from local subjects and from the atlases of established medical authorities. The effort cost Bigelow $6,000. In 1890 Bigelow presented the watercolors to Reginald H. Fitz to be used in the Harvard Medical School's Department of Anatomy. The watercolors were transferred into the Warren Anatomical Museum between 1890 and 1930.