Rough Medicine

Life & Death in the Age of Sail

Sat 10 Sep 2016 – Sun 20 Nov 2016

9:30am – 3:00pm

Museum of Geraldton

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Rough Medicine: Life & Death in the Age of Sail explores the fascinating history of how illness impacted upon and even shaped early sea voyages.

From the 17th Century to the advent of the steamship in the late 19th Century, the exhibition delves into the immigrant voyages that are part of the histories of thousands of Australians.

Sickness could render a voyage anything from uncomfortable to absolutely horrific. Disease spread rapidly in cramped quarters, drinking water was often polluted, food perished and new climates brought new ailments with few escaping a visit to the ship’s surgeon.

An eye-watering array of surgical instruments features in this absorbing and sometimes confronting exhibition. Ship surgeons carried many instruments including saws to amputate limbs, a corkscrew like trephine to remove sections of skull and tooth keys to break off teeth at the root. It was recommended that every ship carried a jar of at least 50 leeches to bleed patients and rebalance the ‘humours’.

Rough Medicine was developed, designed and toured by the South Australian Maritime Museum. This travelling exhibition is supported by Visions Australia and will be on display at the WA Museum - Geraldton until 20 November 2016.

This is a free exhibition.

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