1860s advertising
Guest post: England’s ‘only female doctor’?
Last year, The Quack Doctor featured some bottles from the collection of Michael Till, including this gorgeous and rare example of Cavania’s Wonder-Worker Lotion. A father and daughter team, Professor and Mademoiselle Cavania practised in the north of England during the 1860s and 70s. The prospect of formal medical qualifications for women was only just […]
Read MoreMcAlister’s All-Healing Ointment
McALISTER’S ALL-HEALING OINTMENT OR WORLDS SALVE Has been an old family nurse for the past twenty years, and known all around the world as the most soothing and healing ointment in existence. McALISTER’S ALL-HEALING OINTMENT Never Fails to Cure. Salt Rheum, Scrofula, Ulcers, Small Pox, Sore Nipples, Mercurial Sores, Erysipelas, Carbuncles, Corns, Bunions, and all […]
Read MoreSparks and Son India-Rubber Urinals
Far from being a quack remedy, this device must have been a boon to desperate travellers everywhere. Surgical instrument maker William Huntly Bailey, whom we have met before, described the problem: If there is any inconvenience in travelling on the railway, it is on account of the few stoppages, and no doubt many persons have […]
Read MoreWalter De Roos' Compound Renal Pills
Here’s another product from the enigmatic Dr De Roos, who once again uses the ploy of warning the punters against charlatans. The Renal Pills were still available in the early 20th century, when the results of analysis were reported in More Secret Remedies. The pills were made of sodium carbonate, soap, a resin that might have […]
Read MoreThe Guttae Vitae, or Vegetable Life Drops
Although no proprietor is shown in the following advertisement, the Vegetable Life Drops were one of several cures touted under the name Dr Walter De Roos. De Roos was an enigmatic character and the name was purported to be an alias for one John (or George) Robinson, who might well have bought the business in 1858 from brothers Alfred and Samuel Barker. […]
Read MoreBeetham's Corn & Bunion Plaster
It’s interesting that this advert uses the phrase “worth a guinea a box.” This slogan was plastered everywhere in the second half of the 19th century, advertising the famous Beecham’s Pills. Mr Beetham wasn’t necessarily copying his near-namesake, however. The phrase was around before Thomas Beecham adopted it in 1859, so the satisfied customer who is supposed to have […]
Read MoreRenovating Essence of Azilica
I have absolutely no idea what was in this medicine, so instead of a witty and/or informative comment, here is a picture of a fellow epitomising health and manly vigour. The image is from the Dictionnaire encyclopédique Trousset, published in Paris between 1886 and 1891, and is reproduced courtesy of Old Book Illustrations. […]
Read MoreLaffere's Worm Powders
I’ve been looking forward to this one. It’s the most disgusting advert I’ve posted so far. DO NOT read it if you are eating. WORMS! WORMS! WORMS! LAFFERE’S WORM POWDERS are the best remedy for worms; they effect a certain cure, are tasteless, and at the same time are perfectly harmless. As a […]
Read MoreSelf-Adjusting Curative and Electric Belt
ELECTRICITY IS LIFE. HEALTH AND MANHOOD RESTORED (WITHOUT MEDICINE.) CURE YOURSELF by the PATENT SELF- ADJUSTING CURATIVE AND ELECTRIC BELT. Sufferers from Nervous debility, Painful Dreams Mental and Physical Depression, Palpitation of the Heart, Noises in the Head and Ears, Indecision, Im- paired sight and memory, Indigestion, Prostration, Lassitude, Depression of […]
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