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Monaural stethoscope
1820–39
Boxwood, paper
X2
Stethoscopes have been used to diagnose cardiovascular disease since the early-19th century. Invented by French doctor René Laennec (1781–1826), this early wooden monaural (one-eared) style was used until the 1860s, when the familiar binaural (two-eared) style became popular.
Part of the exhibition Unfamiliar.
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