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Pictures of a surgeon making an incision in a patient's head in order to extract a stone were first collected by Henry Meige, who called the subject 'pierre de tête'. The pictures do not record an actual operation, but are allegorical scenes referring to the subduction of 'folly' (madness) from the body as if it were something that could be cured by surgery.
Title
An Operation for Stone in the Head
Medium
oil on wood
Measurements
H 70 x W 96.3 cm
Accession number
44860i
Acquisition method
purchased by Henry S. Wellcome, c.1900–1936
Work type
Painting
Wellcome Collection
183 Euston Road, London, Greater London NW1 2BE England
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