Superhuman, Rabies and Synaesthesia: Wellcome Collection

14th October

 

The Thing Is...Mad dogs bite Englishmen

 

Speaker: Dr Sara Pennell, Senior Lecturer early modern British History, University of Roehampton. 

Facilitator: Nils Fietje, Medical Humanities Adviser, Wellcome Trust.

http://www.wellcomecollection.org/whats-on/events/the-thing-is-mad-dogs-bite.aspx

I was booked in for a description by Orla O’Donell on the subject of rabies.  I was a little early and the foyer seemed busy.  The guard at the entrance said the Superhuman exhibition was closing, so I checked in with the desk and entered the exhibition space which was, in fact, also quite busy.

At the beginning there is a small statue of an angelic aspect and a large projection of a person with wings.  I could make out the figure of someone flying and guessed it was Icarus.  The various exhibits on show could be recognised in some form and the video items of sporting events and parachute jumps were recognisable though,  of course, I was lacking much of the context. I could make out a few items such as an advert for Lucozade, I think “Daley Can” for an energy drink and a parachute jump.  I thought it best to get some help and returned to the desk. 

At the desk, I met Orla who arranged for some objects to be left out while we discussed prosthetics, IVF, drugs used to enhance performance in sport.  There was an example of a prosthetic big toe for the right foot which was found on an Egyptian Mummy.  I was able to handle a prosthetic left hand for a woman and was surprised that people seem to want a “younger” false hand when their original other limb has aged.  There was a tempered steel corset forming a 22 inch waist for a woman in the early 1900s and an original chest expander was on the tray.  A stab vest made of Kevlar as issued to London’s Metropolitan Police was also on show and which I could touch.  (I had been hearing about the chemistry of Kevlar a few days before at the Royal Society of Chemistry - http://profwhitestick.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/blind-chemist-royal-society-of.html)

 

We went upstairs for a description of a leper clapper, some models of mosquitoes and a display of counterfeit anti-malarial drugs. 

In the Wellcome Library, I had a sneak peek of the mystery object, which had to do with Rabies and a cure dating to the mid-1700s.  This cure had been handwritten and taken from a book of potions written by Sir George Cobb who claimed to have brought the cure back from Tonquin in Asia.  The cure involved mixing natural and prepared cinnabar (mercury sulphide) with musk.  This was to be taken after being bitten by a dog. 

Below are two images which Orla has kindly sent me and a friend has attempted to decipher the handwriting.  This transcription is readable in my screenreader:

 An infallible cure of the bite of a mad dog...

Credit:Wellcome Library, London

Text of image:

An infallible Cure for the bite of a Mad Dog brought from Tonquin by Sir George Cobb Bart (Baronet)

Take 24 Grains of Native Cinnabar, 24 Grains of Factitious Cinnabar and 15 Grains of Musk, Grind all these together into an exceeding fine Powder, and put it into a small tea cup of Arrack, Rum or Brandy.  Let it be well mix’d and give it the Person as soon as possible after the Bite: a second Dose of the same must be repeated 30 Days after, and a third may be taken in 20 Days more.  But if the symptoms of Madness appear on the Person they must take one of the above Doses immediately and a second in an Hour after, and if wanted a third must be given in an Hour afterwards.  The above recipe (?) is calculated for a full grown Person, but must be given to Children in smaller quantities, in proportion to their Ages – the medicine has been given to hundreds with success and Sir George Cobb has himself cured two persons who had the symptoms of the Madness upon them.  If in the Madness they can’t take it in Liquid ...

 An infallible cure of the bite of a mad dog...

Credit:Wellcome Library, London

Text of Image

... Liquid, make it up into a Bolus with Honey.  After the two first Doses, let it be repeated every three or four till the Patient be recovered.  This Repetition not to be omitted unless necessary.  Take all imaginable care that the Musk be genuine – There Recipes may be had of Will.   Frederick Bookville (?) in Bath by whom was lately published the Care of a Person at Bath who was bit by a Mad Dog, had the Hydrophobia and cured by the above Medicine …

Attitudes and hysteria on much feared illnesses were discussed. There were records of mad dogs entering the countryside of Uxbridge, bringing the dogs nearer to the city of London via the Oxford Road (current A40).  I commented that this fear persisted in the 1960s when a rabies scare erupted and put Camberley on the map. (It is on the A30 south west of London)  (We know now that foxes and bats can carry this disease and are known vectors.) 

Rabies is a disease from which death follows if untreated, though cases in the West European area are rare.  In the 1970s I can remember signs in German forest walks declaring an area to be “Tollwut Gebiet” that is a Rabies Area.

There was an interesting example of other rabies outbreaks and cures and statements of how many who had hydrophobia were put out of their misery using feather pillows.

I discussed with Sara the use of mercury compounds in the treatment of syphylis.  This was portrayed in a series of paintings by Hogarth in Marriage a la Mode.  We wondered if there were any artworks illustrating rabies, dogs and the cure.

17th October

 

Packed Lunch: Synaesthesia

Speaker: Michael Banissy, a cognitive neuroscientist at Goldsmiths, University of London

http://www.wellcomecollection.org/whats-on/events/packed-lunch-events.aspx

I attended  my first “Packed Lunch” event within the Wellcome Collection.  These events are held on Wednesdays once a month and there is no need to book.  Catherine Walker from the Wellcome visitor services had alerted me to a talk on synesthesia which was scheduled so I turned up in a suit plus new hat (I was going to a reception at the House of Lords later). 

This was very interesting and there was a good attendance.  The format is 30 minutes of conversation led discussion on a topic, very much on radio terms (podworld) so there are no graphics to worry about.  The talk was led by Dr Michael Banissy from Goldsmiths.  His research interests are on mirror touch synesthesia. 

Approximately 1.4% of the population have the synesthesia phenomenon, where senses are mapped differently and the brain fires neurons in such a way as some people feel pain when watching another being touched or hit.  There is some degree of cognitive empathy involved and I asked about the visual impaired cases of synesthesia.  Currently students and those visiting the Science Museum are encouraged to take a test on synesthesia. 

In the audience were found two (men) who could relate colours to different days of the week.

After 15 minutes of questions the lunch hour is drawing to a close and some of the audience go back to work, but further questioning is encouraged.  At the end of the event I was met by Catherine Walker who asked me how I had got on. 

The Wellcome Collection set a fine example of making their facilities accessible to as many as possible.  In my mind they have certainly set a standard in access for visually impaired people which other science museums may well care to emulate. It is not always a question of funding.  A person who is scientific is by nature curious and will ask questions: e.g. my post on John Gough the blind scientist from  over 200 years ago. (http://profwhitestick.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/john-gough-blind-scientist-and-polymath.html)  

Many thanks to Orla and Catherine for their assistance.

West African copper alloy technology: Wellcome Collection, London

 

23 September, 2012

 

For a trial period, the Wellcome Collection series The thing is … is being held on a Sunday afternoon at 3 PM.  A sneak peak at a mystery object with a tour of associated items within the Wellcome Collection is provided for the visually impaired.  For further details of this series, read on ... 

 
An Edinburgh friend accompanied me, and Catherine Walker showed us some examples of Yoruba art and objects.  We then had a preview of a copper alloy anklet which was to be discussed and were introduced to Steve Martin, a historian, writer and journalist and who was going to present the talk at 3 o’clock.   

I mentioned to Steve that I had been to the Bronze exhibition at the Royal Academy, where there were many objects from the Ife and Benin cultures.  Steve didn’t want to give too much away about the mystery objects in advance of his talk, but we had an interesting discussion about metallurgy in both West Africa and East Africa, where there have been some interesting findings regarding iron and steel production in Tanzania. 

The object itself is an anklet and has a diameter of about the size of a 12 inch LP, with a depth of about 2 inches.  An image of the object is below

 

 

Nigerian copper alloy anklet
Credit: Wellcome Collection, London


 

 

Steve was joined by Timandra Harkness, a writer and presenter.  The format is similar to the series with Quentin Cooper, with many fewer puns and though less inquisitorial, was possibly more discursive. 

The metal industry in West Africa has often had the tag diffusion attached to it.  There is always an assumption that indigenous African metal working was really a result of foreign introduction, whether from North Africa or Europe.  While many of the bronzes and Ife and Benin could be based on imported copper alloys, discoveries of the area to the east of the River Niger, i.e. south-eastern Nigeria, has shown the Igbo- Ukwu culture capable of producing bronze from local raw materials.  Apparently, there are tin deposits in the area of Joss, so a copper-tin i.e. classical bronze was made.

Traders from Europe, starting with the Portuguese, found that a money based system of ‘manilla’ could be developed.  The local Africans would use these as currencies among themselves, and these manillas were to become the trading system of much of the slave trade which was later developed by the north Europeans.  Manilla production went into serious industrialisation in first the Low Countries, then England, with Bristol and latterly Birmingham being the main source of copper alloys.  This was a shift to copper and zinc – a classic brass. 

Manillas, thus, were exported to West Africa, exchanged for slaves who worked the sugar plantations in the West Indies or the cotton plantations in the USA, with the commodities returning to western Europe.  October is Black History month and provides an opportunity for reflecting on the part base metal bashing played in part of the trade routes in the past. 

The role of the anklet viewed above was described by Steve, though whether this is a form of ornament or female enslavement within a community is debatable.  I’ve checked out a few blogs and while some proclaim that these anklets were a symbol of male dominance over the females, others appear to be more apologetic saying that ‘women liked to develop an attractive gait’.  This is a question beyond my pay grade, given my replacement hip joint (steel/ceramic) !

Steve mentioned the term ‘adala’ and the Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford has examples of these: http://web.prm.ox.ac.uk/bodyarts/index.php/permanent-body-arts/reshaping-and-piercing/165-brass-anklets.html . 

Within the Wellcome Collection there is another spiral anklet which encompasses virtually the whole leg as far as the lower thigh and an image of this can be found on the Wellcome Image website, from which the image below has been taken:

 

Copper anklet, Ibo people, Nigeria 1880 - 1930
Credit: Wellcome Library, London  

Conclusion

I found this a very stimulating object and talk and it neatly fits in with the Wellcome Elements series which covered gold, silver and bronze.  It also links in well with the precious metal - base metal combination raised in the recent Noble Art of the Sword exhibition at the Wallace Collection.  I attended a Study Day at the Wallace which included discussion of West  African iron production in a bloomery, with a funnel system to increase the air-flow and provide higher temperatures for iron smelting.  The current Bronze exhibition at the Royal Academy has many fine examples of West African bronze/brass work. 

I have also visited the British Museum to ‘see’ for myself the Benin bronzes in the collection on display.  The Benin bronzes were taken as booty in 1897 and examples of manillas can also be found in the British Museum. 

Little work has been done on checking the metal content of some of the alloys.  It should be easier to check copper alloys in a non-destructive way, unlike steel. 

The next talk in The Thing Is ... series is on 14th October. More information is available on:  http://www.wellcomecollection.org/whats-on/events/the-thing-is-mad-dogs-bite.aspx

To book a place or for more information, you can email access@wellcomecollection.org or call 020 7611 2222.

Soutra - medieval medicine meets windfarm technology

“To a traveller coming from the south, the view from Soutra is most enchanting .  Passing for a considerable way through the dreary moor, where nothing meets the eye but barren health, here, all at once, the fine cultivated counties of Mid and East Lothians, with the Firth of Forth and coast of Fife, burst upon his view.  The suddenness of the change, and the mingled group of hills, and dales, and woods, and waters, which now stretch extensive to the eye, give such a throb of pleasure to the heart as is not to be described.” (pp79-80)

 

Landscape indicating hills of Fife, Forth estuary, Lothians

as viewed from Soutra, Scotland

20 August, 2012

© Prof Whitestick

 

So wrote the Rev. James Ingram in the New Statistical Account of 1845.  This had been ‘cut and pasted’ from an earlier Statistical Account. 

This view would have been familiar to the Romans, who built and travelled the nearby Dere Street which linked Melrose (Newstead) to the Roman fort at Crammond, to the west of Edinburgh. 

The scene is relatively unchanged and on driving north on the current A68, the 21^st century appears with windmills as part of a wind farm development on either side of the road. 

 

 

Landscape of windfarm with host of windmills and some sheep in the foreground

from Soutra Hill, Scotland

20 August, 2012

© Prof Whitestick

 

My father always had a theory that if one could actually see the hills of Fife from either Edinburgh or Soutra Hill (elevation about 1200 feet) it would soon rain.  While not claiming to be following in the traditions of John Gough and Luke Howard (http://profwhitestick.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/john-gough-blind-scientist-and-polymath.html), I did remark about this to the owner of a dog who had made a charge at me in the car park.  The owner had said the dog is after your hat (there was no wind and the hat was firmly on my head).  I commented that this was the calm before the start of bad weather and we agreed. 

At the Wellcome Library the links with science and medicine are openly discussed and I found the John Gough observations he had reported to him inspiring with regard to how visually impaired people can do science, with a bit of help. 

I later went to Carfraemill Hotel for lunch and sure enough, it started to rain while we were having lunch!

Few people realise that going north to the left of Soutra Hill are the remains of an early medieval establishment.  It is known locally as Soutra Aisle and has been the subject of research into medieval medicine. 

Soutra Aisle

Remains of medieval hospital

Scotland

20 August, 2012

© Prof Whitestick

The site is rather overgrown and the information boards have shown signs of weathering.  There is, however, an Open Day series planned as follows:

Open Days at Soutra

August 25, 26, 27 (Sat, Sun, Mon) 2 PM prompt

Learn about the archaeo-medical investigations

You can also get there on a Munro's bus 51/52.  Ask the driver for Gilston road-end and walk up the hill for about 8 minutes

Some of the captions on the information boards are legible and were read out to me.  They included information on the discovery of a variety of seeds and flowers which have been identified in this location and which were used for medicinal purposes.  These included:  opium poppy, hemlock, juniper berries, coltsfoot, liquorice, common valerian, stinging nettle, St John’s Wort and mistletoe.

The Statistical Accounts are a very good source of history as it was put down by Church of Scotland ministers, many of them with an axe to grind.  It was ever thus, and following the Reformation, Edinburgh Town Council got their hands on the hospital of the Holy Trinity (as it had been renamed), much to the annoyance of the neighbouring Presbytery of Dalkeith in the period from 1560 to 1618. 

“By the seizure of its charity revenues, the ruin of its hospital, and the reduction and afterwards the abandonment of its church, the village of Soutra was stripped of its importance, and brought to desolation.  The seat of conviviality and busy, though doubtful charity, of a great hospital, and of a general refuge for the distressed debtor, the weary traveller, the friendless pauper and the afflicted invalid is now silenced and abandoned to the lonely visits of the mountain sheep.”

Soutra lies on the Lammermuir range of hills, which mark the divide – geological faultline – between the southern uplands and the central lowlands of Scotland.  The area has been fought over for centuries and has switched counties, regions, parishes for as long as I can remember.  Currently, Soutra Aisle lies near a sign welcoming Edinburgh bound travellers to Midlothian, while for those going south, one is welcomed into the Scottish Borders.  The area inspired Sir Walter Scott to write the Bride of Lammermuir and this was used by Donizetti for his opera Lucia di Lammermoor. 

My peripheral vision allows me to pick up the windmills on both sides of the A68, with the high voltage electricity pylons which connect nearby Cockenzie coal-fired power station and the nuclear powered station at Torness (Dunbar) to the Scottish grid system.

The current energy policy of the Scottish government may appear to be at odds with Westminster and the future of nuclear energy in Scotland is under review.  Carbon capture and storage, wind farms and solar panels have been researched locally and there is a prospect of wave-power being generated off-shore in the North Sea. 

More information on Soutra Aisle can be found on the following links:

http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/scotlandshistory/medievallife/soutraaisle/index.asp

http://www.jamespringle.co.uk/html/soutra_aisle.html

Lithotomy: Roman Surgical Instruments, Wellcome Collection

*** Update 6/9/12


A new series of The Thing is ... starts at the Wellcome Collection from September 23 2012 at 3 pm. http://www.wellcomecollection.org/whats-on/events/the-thing-isafrica.aspx

This is a Sunday afternoon and before the scheduled event, at 2pm there will be an opportunity for visually impaired people to have a 'sneak peek' at the object or associated item to do with the theme of the Wellcome Collection.  An idea of these events is given in my previous posts about the Wellcome Collection.  The blurb for the September meeting is as follows:

Join historian Steve Martin to explore the connections between magic, medicine and money in African societies, with the aid of a mystery object.

Speaker: Steve Martin, historian, writer and journalist

Facilitator: Timandra Harkness, writer and presenter

This event is FREE.

Book now to receive an e-ticket

Bookings are limited to two per person. Any additional bookings will be cancelled.

For blind and partially sighted visitors:

Members of Wellcome Collection's Visitor Services team have been trained in audio description techniques by VocalEyes.

Join members of the team from 14:00 for audio descriptions of the 'mystery object', the event space and set-up, and descriptions of a small number of relevant objects from our library collections. Please note: there will be no audio description during the event.
Places for the audio description preceding the event are free but very limited. To book a place or for more information, please email
access@wellcomecollection.org or call 020 7611 2222.'
***end of update
 

The Wellcome Collection’s ‘The Thing is…’ series concluded on 11^th July before the run up to the Olympics.  The object for discussion was a surgical instrument used in lithotomy (removal of bladder stones).  (http://www.wellcomecollection.org/whats-on/events/the-thing-isroman-medicine.aspx)

This was an intriguing discussion and once again I had a sneak peek of the mystery object with Catherine Walker from the Wellcome Collection.  The object was a bronze moulded cupped thin piece fitted with a groove for a metal (iron primitive steel) scalpel.  It resembled a tiny coffee spoon with a long thin extension, curved with an inside jagged edge.  The scalpel end was for making an incision in the right spot and then to probe with the spoon end to remove a bladder stone.  The object is well preserved with the bronze mouldings being quite clear.  The iron blade for the scalpel had corroded though the groove for the fitting of this double ended instrument was discernible to experts.  The surgeon had usually pared his fingernails and applied some olive oil to said finger.  In the operation the surgeon would have had the patient sitting legs raised and assistant surgeons would have been on hand to hold down the operating and operated bodies. 

The Wellcome Collection is keen for visually impaired people to both visit the Collection and attend the many events.  Many opportunities are available and on the day of the discussion I found myself chatting to Ralph Jackson, Curator of Romano-British Collections at the British Museum, about metallurgy.  I seem to meet metallurgists and even archaeometallurgists.  The subject of neutron diffraction was not raised though Ralph explained the discoveries he has been making in a site near Rimini.  Ralph probed and examined ancient Roman medicine, surgery and understanding of the body, with the aid of the mystery object.  There are only 10 examples of these instruments known and 3 of them are in the UK.  (There is an image of one on the Science Museum website on: http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/broughttolife/objects/display.aspx?id=4237 )

Bronze scoop, Roman, 199 BCE-400 CE

credits: Science Museum London



On this occasion the facilitator was Nils Fietje, Medical Humanities Adviser, Wellcome Trust.  During the discussion many references were made to Galen and Celsus, the early writers of medical procedures.  It was noted that Pepys had undergone a lithotomy which seemed to have the end result of his being rendered sterile with a vasectomy.

The collection serves as an opening to the many facilities within the Wellcome Trust and Wellcome Library.  Before I met Catherine Walker I checked out the library facilities.  Near the main desk is a bank of desk top terminals.  One of these is fitted with a Jaws screenreader and a headset is available from the service desk.  Much of the collection archives can be searched from outside though with a reader card it is possible to gain access to some journals.  

If an item is not available on the image search it is possible to get the document and arrange for it to be scanned and copied on to a memory stick.  The library is prepared to offer some reading facilities.  The captions on the images often have a brief summary of the item and these can be copied into a screenreader format. This is getting close to closing a circle where often for visually impaired people they usually know what they are “looking “ for but can’t recognise it until a sighted person “reads” or describes it. 

Coincidence or serendipity, but all this medical talk occurred between an epilation of my own plus an X-Ray of my new hip implant!

John Gough - blind scientist and polymath, Wellcome Collection

27June 2012

John Gough’s (1757-1825) ledger account of observations in Kendal of weather and birds migrations was the object which had been chosen from the archives of the Wellcome Collection. (http://www.wellcomecollection.org/whats-on/events/the-thing-isnature.aspx) The archivist Chris Hilton was sparring with Quentin Cooper in the uncovering of the object. 

Meteorological journal kept by John Gough, blind naturalist of Kendal, and sent to Luke Howard, meteorologist and chemist of London.

credit: Wellcome Library, London

I had a sneak peek at the ledger in the Wellcome Library as part of the Wellcome’s audio described preview. I can’t read so Catherine Walker read out the ledger entries from the original volume.    

John Gough had a Quaker background and was in correspondence with other Quakers.  Quakers had a reputation for letter writing and family letters have been meticulously archived.  These Gough records came into the Wellcome Collection, which continues to collect items of health, science and society. 

A Meterological journal kept at Middlesaw, near Kendal ...

credit: Wellcome Library, London

The archives within the Wellcome Library are open to all and can be accessed in person provided you have suitable identity; or via the internet if the archives are on the images list.  For previous events in the ‘The This Is …’ series, the images department at the Wellcome have sent me images of the touch pieces discussed.  For the June gathering, I had been given the catalogue numbers for the items discussed and was able to download them from the Wellcome’s website.  I have put these images on the blog, though I can’t read them. (This is similar to my nmr spectra.)

Although John Gough lost his sight aged 3 on account of smallpox, he dictated his “observations” and asked matter of fact questions.  He was in the circle of Luke Howard from the chemical company who were linked into the dyer chemical business. 

Howard of Ilford had a chemical plant in Ilford (London) and I can remember going round the iodine sublimation towers which were used for refining iodine.  The Japanese cornered the market out of Chile by the 1980s.  At the time, iodine was used in the manufacture of erythrosine, a food colour used in many soft drinks and a topic for some speculation regarding health.

The Gough family had a business in Kendal and the Lake District.  John Gough was a mentor of John Dalton, a fellow Quaker.  The Wellcome Library has much to do with Dalton.  John Dalton’s manuscripts and meteorological readings from various lakes and hills in the Lake District are in bundles in the Wellcome Archives.  On my June visit Catherine showed me examples of John Dalton memorabilia.  As the items I “handled” are not yet in digital format, it was a treat to be so close to chemical history. 

Catherine mentioned that such access is available with a library reader card.  I had been encouraged to try out the Wellcome Library on previous visits so on a subsequent visit I duly signed up.   

Quakers could not attain high political office and barred themselves from army, English Universities, law, organised religion.  John Gough formed part of a Quaker network which included Luke Howard who researched and systematised cloud analysis.  Goethe was said to be keen to be introduced to Howard.  The talk was followed by a discussion of the scientific method and on being matter of fact and precise. 

This was an interesting meeting for me on several fronts.  First, though blind, John Gough had been able to link in to an educational system and scientific society that may not have appeared to be mainstream.  It was fascinating to hear Catherine read out some of the ledger items which form much of our detailed descriptions of weather of 200 years ago. 

Second, there is also the incidental testimony, or unwitting testimony, that can be drawn from such observations and comments on other topics are now useful for archivists in promoting a digital bank of data which can be connected. 

Finally, as part of my sneak peek or preview Catherine had shown me some of the papers of John Dalton.  This was particularly significant for me as a chemist.  The inorganic chemistry division of the Royal Society of Chemistry is named after John Dalton and Dalton can be said to be one of the original thinkers in chemistry in his time.  Dalton’s Atomic Theory was ground breaking in its day so I found it encouraging that he had been mentored by John Gough, a blind man.  Gough had a reputation for asking matter of fact questions and I could find myself nodding as Chris Hilton told us about his methods of questioning and having his measurements and answers presented by a third party. 

Blind Chemist: diffractions and distractions at Wellcome "Elements" event

The Wellcome Collection had a late night event on 22^nd June in their elements series.  (http://www.wellcomecollection.org/whats-on/events/elements-1.aspx ).  Visitors were free to roam the many floors, from the lower ground levels up to the library.

The evening started at 7pm and the theme was Elements and Gold, Silver and Bronze.  This gave a handle for looking at the chemistry, myth, coinage, alchemy and metal crafts in a very relaxed atmosphere.  There were 3 events in the auditorium and I booked a seat for one of them.  Otherwise it was possible to drift around and take part in a fascinating evening with a lot of chemistry involved as well as a bit of socialising.

I had told a friend about it and he was interested in hearing some of the events.  We went to some together otherwise I could drift and go with the flow.  I find I can relate spaces to objects which I had found before and this is commented in brackets. 

Sitting in the café enjoying a coffee a familiar music theme sounded at 7 on the dot –Goldfinger.  It was “Operatic tenor” Stephen Miles, serenading us “with songs of gold and silver.”  Catherine Walker from the Wellcome Collection came up and said hello and we chatted.  Pauline from the Royal Society of Chemistry was also in the café and I was chuffed to introduce the pair of them. (Note: both of them had come up to me knowing that from more than a yard or so I could not recognize them)

A little later, my friend and I went downstairs and met the silversmith, David Clarke.  He buys scrap silver and melts and reworks it.  I asked him about the silver bullion price but he said there was a separate market for his sources.

It was soon time for the first lecture titled “Adventures in Greek and Roman metallurgy with Edith Hall”  Edith Hall is a frequent broadcaster on the classical Greek cultures and often appears on In Our Time, Melvyn Bragg Radio4 programme.  She wrote quite a lot for Open University courses, too.

This was the first lecture and Edith started with the Funeral Games mentioned in Homer’s Iliad following the death of Petrocolus and the lists of gold, cauldrons, animals, women and objects for prizes.  Though light hearted the question and answers were interesting.

A discussion on ethics soon got underway and though Edith wobbled at some poor translations such as alloy composition and what happened to Antimony, I found it interesting that while Hall will talk for free to a comprehensive school she charges a fee for private schools.  Some got into ethics of barter and trade and I suspect she may have been surprised at the level of philosophical discussion from a bunch of scientists.  We skipped through Ontology, Epistemology and talked about concepts of money.  An interesting exchange!

Next, we joined Vayu Naidu, a storyteller who was unfazed by two mobile phone interruptions.  A steward found me a seat and I settled down to listen to an Indian tale of love and betrayal superbly told in relaxed surroundings.  Marina Warner was on the schedule and I had heard her speak on myth and had bought a copy of her book (It has not all been read to me yet: a candidate for an audiobook?) 

I then went to the Wellcome Library (I have been shown this area before by Catherine Walker.) where a steward found me a seat at the front for a fabulous set of music. The saxophone collection of some very expensive instruments was introduced with the names of the parts of the instrument which can be exchanged. A change of mouthpiece, crook and even bell can involve a retuning of the group. There were 3 saxophone players with a variety of instruments.  One had a solid silver bell, one had a pink gold finish.

Charlie introduced her band from Howarths.  They had been called after a group I remember from first around late 1960s.  They started with Goldfinger, some Bach, some Duke Ellington-Caravan and a new piece written by Charlie for a tin whistle (Copper and Tin make bronze).  The saxophones had to be retuned a quartertone.

I chatted afterwards and Charlie let me handle the silver belled instrument. A fascinating 25 minutes and a real treat.

It was now time to wander through the various floors and activities on offer.  I have used headings from the Wellcome’s programme of events as a guide:

1.  “Learn the intricacies of making silver wire with Jamie Hall.”

      (This was located near Henry Wellcome’s life mask with large moustache)

2.  "Watch out for our gold assayer who will be ready to tell you if that precious ring is made of the real thing using X-ray flourescence.”

This was a chance for the cane to be assayed but, even folded it was too large.  Instead, I was shown the old ways of assaying precious metal.  At the mention of Vogel Inorganic Analysis, we soon went up a notch in chemistry.  I was talking with a PhD student about some non precious metals, as we would define them.  Many elements are quite scarce but are not attractive to the jeweler’s trade.  On leaving, I noticed a painting of Galileo’s illegitimate daughter (dressed as a nun)

Meet Marcos Martinón-Torres, a modern-day alchemist"
3.  "

By this point I wanted to have my cane seriously transmuted to gold and went to the stand in the DNA section where a 2p coin was converted to silver.  A lot of showmanship and a real bonus when I discussed real chemistry with Fred who was standing by and must have picked up that I had a chemical background.  We were soon chatting about fluorine NMR which is quite a big thing.  Fred said that boron NMR was making a comeback and I was able to chat about borone hydrides (B2H6 and B2D6), how BH3 adducts were interesting and I had to use heavy hydrogen (deuterium) to work out the mechanism. 

Thanks to Fred and his colleagues. My coin is silver but the cane is still base metal.

4.  Find out how batteries work.

I drifted into electrochemistry and some chat about Faraday, salt bridges and good old Delta G.

5.  Make your own silver photogram.

Many thanks to Jane Yates, who led me into the dark room and laid out my folded cane on some Photogram paper.  At this point, the cane took over and had several baths in chemicals and a silver image formed.  I held a torch above it and for 6 seconds it was exposed by light.  The paper was turned over to protect the image until treatment and fixing.  With amazement I could make out my folded cane, ball and cord almost as it were a silver sword.  (My knowledge gained from the Wallace Collection study day had stood me in good standing)

Many thanks to Jane for a stunning image!

© Prof Whitestick

There was still some time to try out more stalls, so I did!

6.  “Find out how to cast tin with the Institute of Making.”

The cane was too large for a pewter model from a cuttlefish mould but I was told about the process.

7.  "Discover the role that colloids have in making stained glass."

Colloids and nanoparticles have cropped up at some time or another and I was able to try some painting of a stained glass window .  I was helped by Andres and kitted out with rubber gloves, was able to start.  I picked colloidal silver and copper while being guided with a dropper in applying the colloids.

Afterwards I had a chat with Nathan Hollingsworth who is doing postdoctoral research at UCL. We were soon discussing electron diffraction and when I converted nanometers into Angstrom units. My synthesis of novel small molecules involved a lot of bond length and angle property analysis. In the 1970s we saved up our novel compounds and took them to UMIST (Manchester), which at the time had the only electron diffraction facility in the UK.

Thanks Nathan for a great chat about electron and neutron diffraction which I had mentioned as cropping up in the Wallace Collection.

An assortment of photographs were taken. From description and enlargement I have been able to sort them out. Apologies if I have got some names wrong.

Many thanks for a wonderful evening at the Wellcome.  All the students and researchers were polite, interesting and soon engaged with me. UCL has certainly trained them well as rounded characters.  (My own chum at UCL has just got a first, well done…)

PS: This was in my Twitter feed sent by Sylvia McLain ‏ @girlinterruptin
http://occamstypewriter.org/sylviamclain/2012/06/16/why-we-need-neutrons-for-science/#content

PPS: The following exchange concerning boron NMR ontology and part of Edith Hall's Karl Marx's quotation "Gold sein oder Gold Schein" may also be of interest!

Ruth Gledhill ‏@RuthieGledhill

'Boron NMR is making a comeback.' Plse explain wider societal ramifications @profwhitestick. http://profwhitestick.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/blind-chemist-diffractions-and.html

24 Jun ProfWhitestick ‏@ProfWhitestick

@ruthiegledhill It was really Edith Hall and her theory that gold coinage being the start of the change in society.

24 Jun Ruth Gledhill ‏@RuthieGledhill

@ProfWhitestick I will respond further after seeking counsel from our science editor tmrw. Or one of my brainy biochem sisters.