Images(2)

Bleeding-Cup

Date1849

MediumPewter

DimensionsObject/Work: 45 x 130 mm

ClassificationsScience/Medicine

Terms

Object numberC02852

DescriptionBleeding cup. Round basin decorated with incised lines around the inside of the basin with an oval stamp of a camel and the name "maw". Horizontal openwork handle with symmetrical design and central ribbed leaf motif.

Blood letting used to be a common form of treatment for various illnesses. A cut would be made into the patient and the blood allowed to pour into a bowl such as this one. This particular basin can hold up to 1 pint of blood. Bleeding bowls were also made of ceramic, mainly delftware. This one was found in the Thames in 1849.

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