ABSTRACT
Chevalier Jackson (1865–1958) was an American physician and laryngologist. He was one of the founders of modern endoscopy – using tubes to look into the larynx and oesophagus. He published extensively and was a professor at a number of leading American medical schools. An engaging lecturer, he once wrote that ‘in teaching the medical student, the primary requisite is to keep him awake’ ( 2 ). One way to engage students is to use props, and Jackson was a collector of an unusual form of prop. Jackson often performed endoscopies to remove foreign bodies and he kept each of the 2374 inhaled or swallowed bodies that he removed. These included ‘buttons, pins, nuts, coins, bones, screws, dentures and bridges, small toys, among many other items’ ( 3 ). Today, they are housed in the Mutter Museum.
