Address:
Institute for Ethics and History of Medicine
- Library and medical history collections -
Humboldtallee 36
37073 Göttingen
Opening hours/access:
Di. u. Do. 9-12 Uhr u. 13-16 Uhr
Mi. 9-13 Uhr
Contact person/contact:
Kornelia Drost-Siemon
Phone: +49 (0551) 39-9007
E-Mail: Kornelia Drost-Siemon
Homepage der Sammlung
The collection of around 1,200 objects relating to the history of obstetrics (instruments, models, preparations, etc.) dates from the 18th and 19th centuries. The academic teachers of obstetrics and the respective heads of the Accouchierhaus in Göttingen - including Friedrich Benjamin Osiander (1759-1822) and Eduard von Siebold (1801-1861) - built it up as a teaching and research collection. It is supplemented by the detailed birth records of the first clinic directors as well as other valuable archives from the early days of academic obstetric medicine.
Collection history:
In 1759 the collection was founded by Johann Heinrich Fischer, who created a collection of specimens
1808 creation of an instrument catalog by Friedrich Benjamin Osiander
1812 Osiander lists 1,564 preparations in his preparation catalog
In 1833, the collection was significantly expanded by Eduard Casper Jacob von Siebold, who brought his father Elias von Siebold's collection with him when he took up his duties
1862 Revision and reorganization of the collection by Hermann Schwartz and Jacob Henle
1984/1985 Revision and inventory list by Markus Deinhard
1995 permanent exhibition designed and set up by Christine Loytved
Total number of objects:
Approximately 1,200
Development status:
Handwritten inventory books
State of digitalization:
Approximately 30% of the holdings are currently digitized and indexed with the basic metadata in the two instances of the Göttingen collection database. The digitization project is currently continuing.
