ADVERTISEMENT - CONTINUE READING BELOW
11. Victorian-era surgeons usually used their own tools and would mark notches on their saws for every limb they hacked off
In one account of master-amputator Robert Liston, the master surgeon made a show of pulling out a special bone-cutting saw. He opened a long case and removed a straight amputation knife of his own invention. The saw, with which Liston could hack an arm off in under 30 seconds, had a wooden handle with a number of notches in it. According to the legend, Liston would carve a notch for every limb he amputated (whether the patient survived or not!). And he wasn’t the only one to have his own tools of the trade.
Most surgeons had their own scalpels and saws which they used to carry out a wide range of operations – often having heeded the advice of respected surgeon William Gibson, who recommended surgeons practice their bone-sawing techniques at home with old pieces of wood! While Liston and other expert surgeons may have taken pride in their instruments, such an approach was highly problematic. In many cases, surgeons carried scalpels, knives and even saws on their person. They were never even washed, let alone sterilized. In fact, many surgeons brandished their blood-encrusted instruments with pride – the bloodier a saw and the more notches, the better!