Gibson spoon, 1828

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This strange looking spoon was invented by Charles Gibson in 1828. It was a medicine spoon advertised for using with “lunatics and fractious children”. With the medicine in the covered spoon, and your thumb over the end, you put it in the patient’s mouth. When you took your thumb off the end, the change in pressure would allow the medicine to shoot into the patient’s mouth before they could object. There are evident bite marks from resistant patients which reflect a more sinister past of forced medicating and a potential lack of understanding of a patient’s needs. The medical spoon is part of a collection held at Amersham Museum.

Dimensions: L 16cm, W 3cm, H 1.5cm Weight: 74 g Materials: pewter metal

Created through the Becoming Seamlessly Inclusive project. Find out more about this dynamic project, the involvement of our museum trainees and the support from our partners and funders.