Historical information

This stethoscope , or auriscope, came from the Royal Devon & Exeter hospital in 1958 when the maternity unit was transferred to the new City Hospital.

Dr Walker in his correspondence states: "The foetal auriscope is from the days of modesty, came from the Royal Devon & Exter Hospital in 1958, when its maternity ward transferred to the new City Hospital and storage for memorabilia was unavailable."

This item is similar to Stoke's stethoscope, or Barclay's stethoscope, as illustrated in Tiemann's catalogue of 1899. The stem of this stethoscope is, however, much longer than either of these.

The stethoscope came with a letter written to Dr Walker's maternal grandfather by Dr. James Young Simpson. This letter was transferred to the RANZCOG Archives following conservation treatment by the Conservation Centre.

Physical description

A lightweight wooden stethoscope with long stem and a black ebony bell on one end. The bell is almost flat. 37.5 cms in length.