| Description Of Item | Oil on canvas, 46 x 36 cm
Alexander Ziegler was a general practitioner and obstetrician who practised from 30 Buccleuch Place. He became a Licentiate of the Royal College of Surgeons in 1816 and a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians in 1853.
On 19th January 1847 he assisted James Young Simpson when the latter gave sulphuric ether by inhalation to a woman with a pelvic deformity. The operation was that of turning and extracting the infant; it was successful. About 1830, Alexander Ziegler invented obstetric forceps in which Smellie's lock was replaced by splitting the shank of one blade for the passage of the other.
Artist: Alexander S. Mackay |