Obstetric teaching model

This model of a female torso is roughly life-size. It came from the Hospital del Ceppo in Pistoia and was used to teach the rudiments of childbirth, possibly to midwives. The cloth 'baby' can be manipulated to show how birth takes place and how different positions of the child affect the process. In the 18th century, instrumental intervention to deliver a live child was rare, with caesarean section rarely attempted.