Up Close & Peculiar
More than 100 years ago, the globetrotting Robert Ripley began collecting artifacts from his journeys around the world, which today form the heart of the greatest collection of oddities ever assembled. Up Close & Peculiar brings the curious history of these pieces to a personal level as our very own, Allyson Iovino, explores the strange relics that lie within our Warehouse walls! Become a part of the story as we share pieces for every history buff, pop culture junkie, and oddities collector alike.
Today: Bloodletting Instruments
Bloodletting, or the practice of draining blood for the sake of medicine, has been around for thousands of years. Although it sounds like something straight from an ancient apothecary, this practice is still used in some forms today.
Bloodletting has been around for thousands of years, but really gained popularity with the Greek physician Hippocrates. He believed that all illnesses were caused by an imbalance of the body, and draining blood could cure this imbalance.
People like King Charles the Second, and even George Washington tried out bloodletting to cure their ailments! Both of them died within a few days of their treatments, which tells us a bit about how effective this “treatment” actually was.
With the invention of antibiotics, the popularity of bloodletting dwindled. But, the practice still lives on in certain forms under its new name, phlebotomy! It’s mostly used in patients with conditions that prevent their body from regulating the amount of iron in their blood or those with abnormally high red blood cell counts.
Along with taking out blood through tubes, another way to get blood out of the body today is through leeches! Believe It or Not!, in 2004, the FDA approved the use of leeches in blood graft surgeries, as they help restore circulation to the area in a relatively non-invasive way.
Get Up Close with these mysterious medical instruments at Ripley's Believe It or Not! Grand Prairie!
Allyson Iovino
Allyson is Ripley’s dynamic pop culture connoisseur and fun fact fiend. You can always count on her …
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