Physicians' Gallery Newsletter
Updates on upcoming events, exhibitions and online stories
Microscope
The podcast is available to download on Spotify, iTunes, Podbean and Soundcloud.
We’re exploring different objects on display in our Physicians’ Gallery.
This week, we’re exploring early microscopes, 1600s Dutch experimenter Antonie van Leeuwenhoek and red blood cells. Van Leeuwenhoek was an innovator, a microbiologist, and a curious man. Curious enough to make tiny lenses so he could examine leaves, metal and milk, as well as mites, lice and fleas. We uncover his eyeballing of eyeballs as well as his up close examination of exploding gunpowder, faeces and even the crust which developed between his toes after leaving his socks on for 10 days.
The Team:
Sarah E Hayward earned her PhD in Museums and Heritage Studies, with a focus on the history of learning disability, from Kingston University London in 2023. She now works in the Archive Service at the Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability (RHN) in Putney. Sarah has been a dedicated volunteer with the Physicians' Gallery since 2021. She has a passion for archival research and loves to explore creative ways to share the hidden stories she uncovers.
Charlotte Holmes received her PhD in History from the University of Edinburgh in 2022 and she has been volunteering with the Physicians' Gallery since 2019. Her main interest is in Scottish medical history but she has recently been researching the disabled experience in early modern Scotland.
Elizabeth Van Trampe received her MA in Creative Writing from Royal Holloway University of London in 2021 and began volunteering with the Physicians’ Gallery in 2026. She has a varied interest in history and has recently been researching Scandinavian folklore.
