Antique cervical dilator
Bossi’s cervical dilator, as presented on the museum’s YouTube page.
Curator Anna Dhody explains that a device that slightly resembles the large corkscrew that you may use to open a bottle of wine is actually Bossi’s cervical dilator. Yes, that’s right.
The device already appears frighteningly uncomfortable, but, as Dhody demonstrates, it actually has removable components for even more thorough access to the cervix. There’s a gauge on the device designed to ensure that doctors didn’t go too far with the dilator and rupture the cervix, which only heightens the fear factor of this device.
As with most of these medical devices from years past, we really have come a long way from this cervical dilator.
