works

Galleries and Reading Room

Library

Wellcome Café

Wellcome Kitchen

Wellcome Shop

To make your visit as safe and enjoyable as possible, you’ll need to follow our safety measures inside our venue, including wearing a face covering unless you’re exempt. Find out how we're keeping you safe. You no longer need to book a ticket to enter the museum or library.

We’re undertaking research with website visitors to find out some more about you and what you thought about your visit. This survey will take less than 10 minutes to complete. Thank you for your time!

What brought you to our website today?

This fascinating film follows retired man Gordon Fry after surgery to amputate his remaining leg due to arterial disease. There is very detailed footage of his work with the hospital physiotherapist, Jennie Pickering, including his first attempts to walk with prosthetic legs. We also see him drinking and smoking his pipe in the pub and driving his car into his local village and negotiating the shops. His positive attitude prevails and his life is affected as little as it could be given the circumstances.

1 film reel (23 min.) : sound, color, 16 mm

Worth it every inch of the way.

The first half of the film shows in great detail the process of lower limb prosthetic manufacture in the 1950s. The second half shows such a prosthetic being fitted onto an RAF pilot, including his first few steps wearing the artificial leg. By the end of the film he has become so proficient at walking with the prosthesis you would barely know he was missing a leg. He is even able to fly a plane.

1 film reel  (12.30 min.) : silent, color, 16 mm

Lower limb prosthetic manufacture : amputee pilot RAF.

A dog is standing in the background next to a basket with fish offal

1 print : etching ; platemark 18.8 x 11.3 cm

A man with an artificial arm selling live haddock from a basket he suspends from the hook on his left shoulder. Etching by J.T. Smith, 1815.

Crimean War: wounded sailors convalescing at Haslar Hospital. Wood engraving by H. Linton after E. Morin after J. Mayall.

A series of patients (the first one is a middle-aged woman) are fitted with a pneumatic prosthetic leg. The original footage would have had sound as people talk to camera.

1 film reel (6 min.) : mute, colour, 16 mm

Amputee aid.

The two maimed sailors support themselves on crutches on the irregular cobble-stones of a London street. The sailor on the left holds his hat in his left hand as if begging, a crutch under his arm; his left leg is amputated, his right arm, which is without a hand, is raised towards his face, his right eye is bandaged. The sailor on the right is in back view and has lost his right leg and supports himself on two crutches

Two sailors with amputated legs, an eyepatch and an amputated arm moving with the aid of crutches. Etching by S.B., 1783.

A film which has a number of mini-biographies of amputees; the first amputee is a pretty model who calls her prosthetic 'Henry', she is filmed being photographed on a shoot. There is a a brief historical view on how people who are different are treated. In the Walking School, patients who are mostly elderly are rehabilitated and receive lessons in how to walk with their prostheses (this is shot with a slightly sepia tone). A psychiatrist talks about the difficulties the patients experience, especially when they are discharged. A male patient, a former police officer has virtually no stump on one side and has a special prosthetic developed in Canada; he is agile and back at work as a police officer. In his spare time, he enjoys amateur dramatics. His career is described in detail and the details of his accident. With his wife, they talk about the impact of losing his leg. He described why he made the decision to be ordained as a minister. A comparison is made between old-style and modern sockets for a prosthetic. A man of Irish origin details his life; he makes breakfast and keeps house for his adult son who is a postman. He then goes to work; he is a tailor's assistant and explains how his accident led to his poor education. He watches bowls.

1 videocassette (26 min.) (DIGIBETA) : sound, colour

A leg to stand on.

This short film shows a middle-aged man with a below-knee prosthesis as he performs various walks and movements.

1 film reel (4.25 min.) : silent, color, 16 mm

AK 4 bar link.

76 pages : illustrations, portraits ; 23 cm

Back to activity : a survey of the extent to which Desoutter artificial limbs can restore business, social and recreational activity to those who have undergone amputation / by E.R. Desoutter.

This film shows men of varying ages practising walking using prosthetic legs. The first section was shot in Germany in black and white, showing rehabilitation exercises. The second section was shot outdoors at Roehampton in colour showing different lengths of leg prostheses and varying patients' mobility.

1 film reel (11 min.) : silent, black and white & color, 16 mm

Wellcome uses cookies.

More filters

Active filters:

Worth it every inch of the way.

Lower limb prosthetic manufacture : amputee pilot RAF.

A man with an artificial arm selling live haddock from a basket he suspends from the hook on his left shoulder. Etching by J.T. Smith, 1815.

Crimean War: wounded sailors convalescing at Haslar Hospital. Wood engraving by H. Linton after E. Morin after J. Mayall.

Amputee aid.

Two sailors with amputated legs, an eyepatch and an amputated arm moving with the aid of crutches. Etching by S.B., 1783.

A leg to stand on.

AK 4 bar link.

Back to activity : a survey of the extent to which Desoutter artificial limbs can restore business, social and recreational activity to those who have undergone amputation / by E.R. Desoutter.

Bilateral AK sockets.

Stay in the know

Wellcome collection

Finding us:

Opening times:

Today's opening times

Wellcome uses cookies.

Search the collections

More filters

Active filters:

Worth it every inch of the way.

Lower limb prosthetic manufacture : amputee pilot RAF.

A man with an artificial arm selling live haddock from a basket he suspends from the hook on his left shoulder. Etching by J.T. Smith, 1815.

Crimean War: wounded sailors convalescing at Haslar Hospital. Wood engraving by H. Linton after E. Morin after J. Mayall.

Amputee aid.

Two sailors with amputated legs, an eyepatch and an amputated arm moving with the aid of crutches. Etching by S.B., 1783.

A leg to stand on.

AK 4 bar link.

Back to activity : a survey of the extent to which Desoutter artificial limbs can restore business, social and recreational activity to those who have undergone amputation / by E.R. Desoutter.

Bilateral AK sockets.

Stay in the know

Wellcome collectionWellcome Collection

Finding us:

Opening times:

Today's opening times

Wellcome collection