Object Encounter: Scarificator

A daily drop-in at Saville's Chemist on Kirkgate exploring Victorian medicine and the 19th-century scarificator used for bloodletting.

Visitors can drop into Saville's Chemist on Kirkgate at York Castle Museum to hear about modern Victorian medical practice and the popular treatment of bloodletting. The talk explains how a 19th-century scarificator was used to balance the blood of the four humours — blood, yellow bile, black bile and phlegm — to treat headaches, fever and other ailments. Suitable for family audiences, though it covers the topic of bloodletting, and the activity is subject to staff availability.