Name/Title
scale, balanceEntry/Object ID
1990.025.003Description
Scales, balance. A-E. Case, holding scale and weights. A--Scales: 9"h x 8"w x 2.5"d. Brass bar with 'S' hook for hanging, two round scales hanging on blue strings from each end of bar. B--Black case with purple velvet lining. 1.25"h x 6.75"w x 3.25"d. Shaped indentations inside for scales and weights. Brass hook and nail clasp. C--Flat brass .75" square weight with "2 Drachm." inscribed on one side, unknown symbol on reverse, D--Flat brass .5" square weight with "1/2 Drachm." inscribed on one side, unknown symbol on reverse. E--Flat brass .5" square weight with unknown inscriptions on both sides.Context
Doctors used balance scales like this one to measure precise doses of powdered medicines, weighing ingredients against small brass weights marked in drachms (about 1/8 of an ounce). A physician might carry a compact case like this on house calls, mixing remedies directly at a patient's bedside. Getting the measurement right mattered: too little medicine was useless, and too much could be deadly.
This set was owned and used by Dr. Francis J. Crawford (1819-1885), a Carroll County Physician, who graduated from Washington University School of Medicine in Baltimore in 1844. He may have received these scales at that time.Acquisition
Accession
1990.025Source or Donor
Crawford, Lola B.Acquisition Method
GiftExhibitions
Exhibition
Main Street at Work: Merchants and Medicine in Carroll CountyNotes
"Doorway to the Past."General Notes
Note
Section of envelope with postal stamp (Baltimore, Md., Rec., Sep.4,1909, 7:30 am). Written in pencil: "Grandfather Crawford's weights. Dr. Francis Jessis Crawford. Winfield, Carroll Co., Md."
