Amazing Anatomical Photographs from Alec Fraser’s Handbook of Brain Surgery, 1890 – Design You Trust

Amazing Anatomical Photographs from Alec Fraser’s Handbook of Brain Surgery, 1890


Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library

It is difficult to categorize these photographs as art, since they are educational material. However, they are prepared, preserved, and photographed so carefully and even maniacally that one cannot help but see the whole thing as an art object. The photos were taken for The Handbook of Brain Surgery by surgeon Alec Fraser.

This edition, published in 1890, was cutting-edge. Mr. Fraser developed his own method of preserving the brain, his own solution and excelled in the art of photography. As a matter of fact, he was originally a very good surgeon and trained as a professional photographer specifically for this manual (which took him about six months).

h/t: flashbak


Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library

Each image in the book is to be viewed in order as a series. Fraser slices into the human head layer by layer:

“When I first began to make serial dissections it was essential for me to know whether the head always occupied the same position when it was replaced in its mould. In order to make sure of this I laid aside a double back with two plates, exposing each of them for the skin view, then again each of them for three or four different serial views, such as the external or median surface of the brain, for as many dissections as I thought would be a sufficient test for determining the object mentioned above, giving to each view a fourth or fifth of the exposure necessary for the making of a single serial negative.

I was highly pleased to find, not only that the heads after their return to their mould always occupied the same position, but also that I had here a fertile means of showing the relations of the deeper parts to the skin surface.”


Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library


Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library


Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library


Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library


Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library


Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library


Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library


Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library


Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library

If you want more awesome content, subscribe to 'Oh, Design You Trust,' our brand new Facebook page! Trust me, you won't be disappointed.

More Inspiring Stories

Photographer Johnny Joo Captures Forgotten Structures Overtaken By Nature
Photographer Kevin Fleming Finds Beauty in the Wild
19 Times People Took An Ordinary Photo And Got A Renaissance Masterpiece
Meet Georgina Burke, The Plus-Size Model Who's Changing The Game
Trümmerfrauen: The Women Who Helped Rebuild Germany After World War 2
"Braided Rivers": Beautiful Landscapes From Above By Kevin Krautgartner
Amazing Snapshots Capture Street Life in New York City From the Mid-1930s to the End of the 1940s
Backstage Reality Of Russia: Atmospheric Photography Through A Skater’s Eyes
These Color Photos of Paris Were Shot 100 Years Ago
Child Labor In America: Horrible Photographs That Show Boys At Coal And Zinc Mines From A Century Ago
Wild Things: Victoria's Secret Angels without Make-up
Russian Artist Gained More Than 4M Followers By Taking Bizarre And Thought-Provoking Photos
Incredibly Colorized Pictures Show The Life Of Russian People In The Past
Lay's Summer Days Promotion Puts Your Fav Summer Photo An A Bag Of Chips
'Game Of Thrones' Releases 20 New Season 8 Character Posters
Breathtaking Outdoor & Lifestyle Photography from All Over the World by André Alexander
The Best 16 Photos Of The Wildlife Photographer Of The Year 2021
Ukrainian Photographer Creates Powerful Photo To Overcome Anxiety, And Here’s How She Did It
The Sense Of Emotions In Fine Art Photography By Masha Sardari
Vintage Photos Proving That The Beauty Of People From Previous Generations Is A Unique Thing
National Geographic's “Women of Vision” - A New Generation of Female Photojournalists
Photographer Jack Davison Captures The Best Actors Of 2019 With A Minimalist And Inventive Approach
Photographer Simon Laveuve
Photographer Michael Lee Captures London Like You’ve Never Seen Before