Indeed, that was the claim of certain nineteenth century leech advocates, who deemed the miraculous little creature itself far gentler than lancet, fleam or scarifier (also called a scarificator: the “mechanical leech” in the illustration, left). Shiny, clean and angular, where the leech is squat, wet and slug-like, there would appear to be little comparison between the two. During my public engagement sessions in the Grant Museum, I’ve tried asking various visitors to guess what animal the fist-sized metal box was designed to emulate: no one has yet hit on the right answer, even though I usually stand right in front of the leech cabinet.
So much so, that one inspired individual decided to make a mechanical version of the creature. So ran one particularly enthusiastic nineteenth century advertisement for the animal that has had the most enduring association with medical history.
