“…I curse loquacious doctors for their lies:
They kill the man who’d live, save him who’d died.
Many physicians are foes of the sick
And fail to study what is wrong but, quick,
Prescribe a cure, and often kill outright…”
Part of a medieval Latin poem, discovered D. Yates, Bulletin of the History of Medicine (1980).
Satirical medical art has been around a long time. For example, caricatures of the medical profession, quacks and healers, are found in the sixteenth century Italy, and, then, English painter William Hogarth (1697–1764) also brought to the public his vision of the medical practitioners’ faults, as well as the horrors of Bedlam. Below are three paintings from three different historical periods, showcasing the prevalent attitudes towards medical profession or the state/progress of medicine.
An Operator Making an Incision behind the Ear of a Seated Patient by Joachim van den Heuvel
The setting here is an apothecary of a sort where a person undergoes a medical procedure, being restrained by others. Everything regarding this procedure appears haphazard, from the eccentric red costume worn by the “surgeon” to the attitude of the men helping him restrain the seated patient who is to be blood-let. The woman is seen being shocked at the sight of blood as the surgeon makes an incision behind the patient’s ear and blood appears. There is a poster on the wall showing calculi, bladder stones, which is another sign that this operation may have something to do with the eventual extraction of the stone of folly from the patient’s head (these stones were thought to be the cause of madness). The warm colours of this artwork, and the determined, enthusiastic expressions of some men disguise the fact that this is, in fact, a very dangerous procedure carrying a high risk of infection, especially if performed in an unhygienic environment, similar to this makeshift operation room. Hieronymus Bosch (c. 1450 – 1516) is believed to be one of the first to depict this theme of extracting the stones of folly in art, see my discussion of his painting in post Hieronymus Bosch: 3 Lesser-Known Artworks.
Physicians disputing while the patient suffers by Johann Geyer
This satirical painting shows physicians gathered in a house of one rich sick man. The doctors dispute either his diagnosis or treatment as the patient is seen in the background to the left, waiting patiently and suffering in silence. The physicians’ arrogance, obstinacy and self-interest prevent them from reaching an agreement and actually curing the patient, or alleviating his pain. They are more concerned with their reputation, status and possible shame if proven wrong about something. One doctor holds a flask of liquid in his hand with a defeated expression on his face, while another is furiously gesticulating, being in a heated debate. Another is seen smiling and rubbing his hands, and one is even yawning, probably being bored of the whole affair. More doctors are also seen in the background exchanging words. Time is of the essence, and yet, it is being wasted.
The state of the seventeenth- and eighteenth-century medicine was still very far from what it is now, with physicians of that time being often unsure what really causes this or that disease, and some even still believing in the theory of the four humours. This scene by Geyer depicts chaos and incompetency of the esteemed profession of that time. It was a common art satire to respond to powerful professionals who could do more harm than good to their patients, for example, by unnecessarily bleeding or wounding them, or invading their privacy, while also collecting money from them. “God heals, and the Doctor takes the Fees” (attrib. Benjamin Franklin).
The Surgeon by Jose Perez
In this painting by Jose Perez, the operation on a patient in a hospital is linked to a construction work. As on a construction site, much depends in an operating room not only on the experience of the staff, but also on the level of team-work, organisation, and individual responsibility. In both of these settings, workers have to work seamlessly together as a unit, while also being individually accountable for different tasks. In this artwork, Perez satirises the advanced and increasingly complex nature of operations in our modern age, where various body parts, including faces, can be replaced by others, while many of the tools used to bring it all about, as well as humans, with all our fallibility, remain the same.
The art depicts an unconscious patient, even resembling a statue of liberty, on an “operating table”. The medical staff work tirelessly on the patient as builders would on any monument or building to be raised. The workshop looks frighteningly makeshift and rudimentary – one single match illuminates the whole procedure, some wooden planks on the patient remind of an open Bible, and a surgeon reading from a chart gives an appearance of a priest “ministering” over the procedure. It seems that some, if not most, things in this operating room still depend on God’s will. The advances of modern medicine awe and instil a sense of wonder, but the core procedures and principles have not changed much, and the same, though modified, age-old medical tools are being used. Discover more satirical medical art by American artist Jose Perez on this site.
Thoughts on Papyrus 
Until very recently medical practice seems shockingly primitive. And anyone could become a doctor in places like England if you could afford the training. For some good books about being a doctor before modern medicine check out Celine’s Journey to the End of the Night and Somerset Maugham’s quasi-autobiographical book Of Human Bondage. It’s interesting to think of Celine’s doctor going around struggling to get paid and now health care with its outrageous cost and poor quality at least in the US….
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