Dr Auzoux's horse hoof
by Martyn L. Gorman, Honorary Curator
Models have long been used in biological and medical education. Some of them are not merely functional but are exquisite works of art in their own right. The University of Aberdeen Zoology Museum is fortunate in having in its collections models made by some of the greatest exponents of the art. One of the finest, and one that I have long admired, is a model of a horse hoof made in 1879. The model is labelled in French and is made of several parts each of which can be removed to show anatomical details of bones, ligaments, muscles, nerves and blood vessels in different parts of the lower leg and hoof.
Horse hoof. |
The model
is signed, in black ink, Louis Auzoux. Auzoux (1797-1880) was a French
medical school graduate and was one of the pre-eminent makers of models
of humans and other animals during the 19th century.
In the summer of 2005, while on holiday in Normandy, my wife and I found
our-selves in a small town with a small museum, Le Museé de
l’Ecorché d’Anatomie du Neubourg. To my delight
the Neubourg museum of “skinless anatomy” was devoted entirely
to Docteur Auzoux and his models. (Contact details for the museum are
at the bottom of this page.)
Le Museé de l’Ecorché d’Anatomie. |
As a young medical student, Auzoux had great difficulty in studying human
anatomy since cadavers were difficult to come by and decayed rapidly.
Auzoux devised an elegant solution; inspired by the toy puppets sold on
the streets of Paris, he started to make papier-mâché models
of human dissections. In 1822, the same year that he received his medical
degree, Auzoux presented his first complete anatomical male figure to
the Paris Academy of Medicine, receiving a commendation for his work.
The
Aberdeen University Anatomy Museum has one of Auzoux's life-size models
of a man; it is, as far as we are aware, the only one of its kind in Scotland.
The head of our human model. |
The Aberdeen papier-mâché
man. |
The genius of Auzoux’s models lay in the fact that, not only were
they realistic and anatomically accurate, but also they could be taken
apart and reassembled by the student. This was the reason that Auzoux
called his paper mâché models anatomy clastique, from the
Greek word klastos, which means broken in pieces.
Five years after presenting his first model to the Paris Academy, Auzoux
opened a factory in a large house in his home village of Saint-Aubin-D’Ecrosville,
a few kilometers from Le Neubourg, providing much needed employment and
prosperity for many families.
The factory in 1900. |
The early models from the factory were of human structures, the most spectacular
being 'Homme Clastique', a life size body, composed of 130 pieces of papier
mach, entirely dissectible and with 2000 anatomical structures. Later,
the factory diversified into zoological, veterinary, and even botanical
models. Achieving an international reputation, the company went on to
produce a very large range of models that were exported all over the world
and won gold medals at many exhibitions, including the Great Exhibition
of 1851 in London.
Human hand. |
Human male pelvic area. |
Snail, partially disarticulated. |
Wood and wheat seed. |
The models were made entirely by hand by a skilled workforce of men and
women. The first step in the process was to make three-dimensional leaden
moulds of the various components of the models. The re-usable moulds,
which were set into blocks of wood, were first of all lined with several
layers of glued paper and then filled with ”Terre” a paste
of flour glue, finely shredded paper, chopped rags, blanc de Meudon (calcium
carbonate) and poudre de Liège (powdered cork). The last two ingredients
were essential to the process and were kept secret, never written down
but passed by word of mouth.
The two halves of the mould were aligned and forced together in a formidable wooden press, until dry.
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Lead moulds. |
The press. Note the full size human in the background. |
After removal from the press the model components were reinforced with wire, carefully trimmed and then skillfully painted so as to look as natural as possible. Arteries, veins and nerves were crafted from wires wound with coloured and ribbons and other textiles, painted and then carefully wired and glued into place.
Human head at an early stage in the painting process. |
Workbench showing a partially painted human leg and blood vessels under construction. |
Finally
the various parts of the model were articulated with a variety of pins
and fastenings so that it could be taken apart and reassembled at will.
The resulting models were solid and robust and capable of withstanding
regular handling by generations of students. Our own horse hoof is over
125 years old but it is as good as new.
Dr Auzoux brought much needed skilled work and prosperity to his home
village over many, many years.
Completed model of a dissected teleost
fish. |
Today, Dr Auzoux's factory lies closed and empty but his memorial lies against its wall, at the head of the Place du Dr Auzoux, just around the corner from the Auzoux public hall. The memorial was erected in 1890 by la Société libre d'agriculture, sciences, arts et belles-lettres de l'Eure. Clearly he is not forgotten!
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Further reading.
Grob, Bart, The World of Auzoux: Models of Man and Beast in Papier-Mâché,
Museum Boerhaave, Leiden, The Netherlands: 2000
Links.
Musee de l'Ecorche d'Anatomie
Espace Culturel
54, Avenue de la Liberation
27110 Le Neubourg
T l : 02 32 35 93 95
Site internet : www.musee-anatomie.fr
E-mail : contact@musee-anatomie.fr
