Kelene is the proprietary name used for ethyl chloride in France which became synonymous with the agent in Europe. The manufacturer, Gilliard P. Monnet and Cartier of Lyon, also supplied Redard with his ampoules in 1890. Ethyl chloride was discovered by the French chemist Guillaume-Francois Rouelle in 1759; however it was not until 1901 that Frederic-Henri Basse manufactured sufficient for scientific study. Marie Jean-Pierre Flourens, Professor Comparative Anatomy at the University of Paris, first reported the effect of the inhalation of ethyl chloride after some experiments with and other agents in dogs. He described three experiments in which the dogs died, however death followed a period of insensibility as with ether although of much faster onset.Ten large glass phials containing 3g Kelene (Ethyl Chloride) stored in their original packaging. The box originally had twelve phials with now only ten remaining. Of the ten, 8 still contain the Kelene, 1 phial is empty but intact and 1 phial is broken. The cardboard box has a maroon paper cover, removable top with the product label and literature pasted across the base and top of the package. All product information is in French.ethyl chloride, kelene, local anaesthetic, gilliard p. monnet and cartier, france

The item was collected by Dr Geoffrey Kaye from a Vichy French military hospital during World war II.The inhaler comprises a black rubber face mask that connects to a metal circular chamber from which two white rubber valves are used to administer the anaesthetic agent. The ethyl chloride vials are labelled 'Kelene', a brand name. A waxed paper rebreather bag is attached to this metal chamer. mask, gas, anaesthesia, rebreather bag, world war ii, dr geoffrey kaye, ethyl chloride, kelene, french, vichy