Untitled (Demonstration of the Surgical Use of Ether) 1847

Editor: So, this haunting image, "Untitled (Demonstration of the Surgical Use of Ether)," attributed to Southworth & Hawes, shows a surgical scene. It feels so staged, so… formal. What do you see in this piece? Curator: It's a capture of a pivotal moment, isn't it? The advent of ether's use in surgery. Forget antiseptic! Imagine the horror of surgery before this. I think that the composition, carefully arranged, speaks to a desire to frame this moment as progress. Editor: Progress, but it also feels… clinical, detached. Curator: Detachment was part of the ethos of the time. Science as objective, clinical. A way of distancing oneself from the realities of the body. Editor: It’s fascinating how much a single image can reveal. Curator: Indeed. A moment framed in time, a question for us to ponder.