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Explore the history of medicine through the British Sign Language videos from the Brought to Life website.

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Belief: The model of the Asklepion

When the ancient Greeks were ill they would visit the local Asklepion, a shrine to the Greek god of healing, Asklepios.

In the 1500s and 1600s, pomanders were used to combat poisonous vapours, or miasma, believed to cause disease and illness.

In the 1930s this minature hospital toured the country. It was an eye-catching way of showing the work of modern hospitals to the public.

A nurse owned this kit, and used it when visiting patient’s homes. It contains syringes, pipettes, a measuring cylinder, and some empty bottles.

These miniature pipes, sewerage fittings, toilets and wash basins were used to demonstrate good and bad practice for public hygiene in 1895.

Before Joseph Lister developed his achromatic lens in 1826, the microscope was not fully accepted as a reliable tool for medical research.

This ornate saw would have impressed patients – a kind of status symbol, but the lavish decoration harboured germs, risking further infection.

This iron lung kept sufferers of polio alive when they struggled to breathe. It was a lifesaver, but also a terrifying confinement.

Vesalius' book De Humani Corporis Fabrica (On the Fabric of the Human Body) revealed the hidden mysteries of the human body through dissection.

The owner of this leg was a prisoner of war during the Second World War. It was made from aircraft parts by their comrades within the camp.