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Medical Terminology Daily (MTD) is a blog sponsored by Clinical Anatomy Associates, Inc. as a service to the medical community, medical students, and the medical industry. We post anatomical, medical or surgical terms, their meaning and usage, as well as biographical notes on anatomists, surgeons, and researchers through the ages. Be warned that some of the images used depict human anatomical specimens. Click on the link below to subscribe to the MTD newsletter. If you think an article could be interesting to somebody else, feel free to forward the link of the article. Should you want to use the information on the article, please follow the CAA, Inc Privacy and Security Statement found at the bottom of this page. You are welcome to submit questions and suggestions using our "Contact Us" form. The information on this blog follows the terms on our "Privacy and Security Statement" and cannot be construed as medical guidance or instructions for treatment. |
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Self-portrait, Henry Vandyke Carter, MD (Public Domain)
Henry Vandyke Carter, MD
(1831 – 1897)
English physician, surgeon, medical artist, and a pioneer in leprosy and mycetoma studies. HV Carter was born in Yorkshire in 1831. He was the son of Henry Barlow Carter, a well-known artist and it is possible that he honed his natural talents with his father. His mother picked his middle name after a famous painter, Anthony Van Dyck. This is probably why his name is sometimes shown as Henry Van Dyke Carter, although the most common presentation of his middle name is Vandyke.
Having problems to finance his medical studies, HV Carter trained as an apothecary and later as an anatomical demonstrator at St. George’s Hospital in London, where he met Henry Gray (1872-1861), who was at the time the anatomical lecturer. Having seen the quality of HV Carter’s drawings, Henry Gray teamed with him to produce one of the most popular and longer-lived anatomy books in history: “Gray’s Anatomy”, which was first published in late 1857. The book itself, about which many papers have been written, was immediately accepted and praised because of the clarity of the text as well as the incredible drawings of Henry Vandyke Carter.
While working on the book’s drawings, HV Carter continued his studies and received his MD in 1856.
In spite of initially being offered a co-authorship of the book, Dr. Carter was relegated to the position of illustrator by Henry Gray and never saw the royalties that the book could have generated for him. For all his work and dedication, Dr. Carter only received a one-time payment of 150 pounds. Dr. Carter never worked again with Gray, who died of smallpox only a few years later.
Frustrated, Dr. Carter took the exams for the India Medical Service. In 1858 he joined as an Assistant Surgeon and later became a professor of anatomy and physiology. Even later he served as a Civil Surgeon. During his tenure with the India Medical Service he attained the ranks of Surgeon, Surgeon-Major, Surgeon-Lieutenant-Colonel, and Brigade-Surgeon.
Dr. Carter dedicated the rest of his life to the study of leprosy, and other ailments typical of India at that time. He held several important offices, including that of Dean of the Medical School of the University of Bombay. In 1890, after his retirement, he was appointed Honorary Physician to the Queen.
Dr. Henry Vandyke Carter died of tuberculosis in 1897.
Personal note: Had history been different, this famous book would have been called “Gray and Carter’s Anatomy” and Dr. Carter never gone to India. His legacy is still seen in the images of the thousands of copies of “Gray’s Anatomy” throughout the world and the many reproductions of his work available on the Internet. We are proud to use some of his images in this blog. The image accompanying this article is a self-portrait of Dr. Carter. Click on the image for a larger depiction. Dr. Miranda
Sources:
1. “Obituary: Henry Vandyke Carter” Br Med J (1897);1:1256-7
2. “The Anatomist: A True Story of ‘Gray’s Anatomy” Hayes W. (2007) USA: Ballantine
3. “A Glimpse of Our Past: Henry Gray’s Anatomy” Pearce, JMS. J Clin Anat (2009) 22:291–295
4. “Henry Gray and Henry Vandyke Carter: Creators of a famous textbook” Roberts S. J Med Biogr (2000) 8:206–212.
5. “Henry Vandyke Carter and his meritorious works in India” Tappa, DM et al. Indian J Dermatol Venereol Leprol (2011) 77:101-3
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Interesting discoveries in a medical book
As some of you may know by now, I am a collector of antique medical books and books that relate to the history of anatomy and medicine. |
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| As important as the books themselves are, there are details beyond the book itself that can take hours of my time doing research. The first one is the bookplates (also known as Ex-Libris). The have been used for centuries by book owners and collectors to identify the books in their collections, a tradition that seems to be falling in disuse. Not me, I have one that you can see here. Some of these can lead to places that you cannot imagine initially. One of these bookplates took me to research a potential resident ghost in a library!
Provenance is also important. Where was it printed? Who owned it? Who was the illustrator? etc. I recently acquired a second copy of the book “EPHRAIM MCDOWELL, FATHER OF OVARIOTOMY AND FOUNDER OF ABDOMINAL SURGERY. With an Appendix on JANE TODD CRAWFORD”. By AUGUST SCHACHNER, M.D. Cloth, 8vo.A p. 33I. Philadelphia, J. B. Lippincott CO., I921. Dr. McDowell has also been featured in this blog in the series "A Moment in History". This second copy is most valuable because of the papers found within the book. There is a series of notes, newspaper clippings, and copies of letters! Here is a detail of what I have found: The book seems to have belonged to Cecil Stryker, MD.,a physician in Cincinnati, and one of the founders of the American Diabetes Association (ADA). There is a copy of a letter by Dr. Ephraim McDowell to Dr. Robert Thompson (Sr.) dated January 2nd, 1829, a year before Dr. McDowell's death. The letter is shown in the image attached. In this letter Dr. McDowell describes in his own words the ovariotomy he performed on Jane Todd. He also describes other ovariotomies he performed and his opinion on "peritoneal inflammation" |
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| There is a note from Dr. Cecil Striker to "Bob" dated 6/3/73 when he gifted a copy of this book. In the note Dr. Striker explains that he bought several copies of the book and he is sending this copy to him. There is also a copy of Dr. McDowell's prayer (costs 25 cents), and a page of the Kentucky Advocate newspaper published in Danville, KY and dated Sunday April 15, 1973 on the restoration of Dr. Alban Goldsmith home, a surgeon who assisted Dr. McDowell in his first ovariotomy (first in the world, that is).
Last, there is a note dated September 16, 1974 from the wife of Dr. West T. Hill, Chairman of the Dramatic Arts Department at Centre College in Danville, Kentucky. In this handwritten note she mentions the McDowell family reunion that took place on June 15 and 16, 1974 in Danville. With the note comes the program and registration form for the festivities! Dr. West T. Hill was one of the many responsible for the restoration of the MacDowell Home and Museum. Today Danville has the West T. Hill community theatre that honors his name. All of this in one book, as I always say "You know where you are going to start reading it, but you never know where are you going to end in researching it". This book will be a great addition to my library catalog. Dr. Miranda. |
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