Sold by Max Rambod Inc, Woodland Hills, CA, U.S.A.
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AbeBooks Seller since 5 February 2021
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Pair of Original Gelatin Silver Photographs Documenting Industrial Medical Examinations. New York: Brown Brothers, ca. 1910s-1920s. Two gelatin silver prints, each measuring 6.5" x 8". Photographer's stamp to verso: "Photograph by Brown Brothers, 1482 Broadway, N.Y." Contemporary manuscript annotations on verso. A scarce visual record of early 20th-century industrial medicine, this pair of photographs captures occupational health procedures for laborers engaged in hazardous work involving compressed air-most likely related to caisson, tunnel, or underwater bridge construction. At a time when industrial safety regulation was still emerging and medical oversight for laborers was limited, these images document how workers may have been screened for dangerous physiological vulnerabilities. The first image depicts a medically dressed man in suit and tie applying a sphygmomanometer tourniquet to a laborer's forearm. The photograph is tightly framed to emphasize the precision of the diagnostic act, showing the physician's intense concentration as he tightens the apparatus. The verso caption reads simply: "Tourniquet", a reference to the blood pressure instrument that, in this period, had only recently become a staple in medical diagnostics following its widespread adoption in the early 20th century. The second photograph presents a cramped clinical environment. Three men occupy the small space: one shirtless worker facing away from the camera, another wearing overalls and gazing directly at the lens, and a third in white shirt and tie-likely the attending physician or examiner. The walls are lined with chemical bottles, shelves, and rudimentary medical tools. The handwritten annotation on verso identifies the activity depicted: "Dr examining man before he allows [him] to work with compressed air." This provides critical context, aligning the photograph with historic occupational medicine practices during a time when "caisson disease" (now known as decompression sickness) was a significant hazard for workers engaged in pneumatic caisson construction. Introduced as a medical concept in the late 19th century, such examinations aimed to identify workers at high risk of collapse or death due to air pressure-induced nitrogen buildup in the bloodstream. Taken together, these photographs offer rare and intimate evidence of the growing entanglement between medicine and labor regulation during America's rapid industrial expansion. The photographer, Brown Brothers, was among the earliest press and stock photography agencies in the United States. Minor surface wear and curling; image clarity and tonal contrast remain strong. Overall very good condition.
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