Wax moulage, dorsum of the hand
Maker
Herman Fermor Lawrence (b.1863, d.1936)
Date
Circa 1900
Description
This early 20th century wax moulage depicts the symptoms of squamous cell carcinoma affecting a patient's hand. The hand shows ulcerated radiation burn common in radiographers of the time. The moulage was created by Dr Herman Lawrence, the first dermatologist of Melbourne’s St. Vincent’s Hospital. Lawrence was following the lead of European moulage makers in giving his waxes realistic details like eyebrows, eyelashes and accurate skin tone. In this era, a wax cast was one of the only ways to accurately document in three dimensions the external symptoms of disease. Lawrence donated his moulages to the University of Melbourne in 1919-1920.
See full details
Do you know something about this object?
Be the first to comment on this object record.