This exhibit examines the evolution of teratology (i.e. the study of perceived abnormalities in the natural world, both real and imagined) through the eyes of physicians and philosophers. How have they considered and how have they intertwined different interpretations in their representations and explanations of wonders from Antiquity to the end of the 18th century?
This richly illustrated exhibit includes pamphlets, rare broadsides, and significant books in the history of teratology drawn from the extensive collections of The New York Academy of Medicine Library.
Caroline Duroselle-Melish, Reference Librarian, Historical Collections, conceived, researched, and developed “A Telling of Wonders: Teratology in Western Medicine through 1800” physical exhibit. Open and free to the public, the exhibit was on display from November 1, 1999 to February 15, 2000 at the New York Academy of Medicine Library. Shortly after, the current online exhibit was created based on the physical exhibit.
