Another Osler Book at Auction

At the turn of the last century, MedChi asked a local rare book dealer to appraise some of the books in our collection. He did that, but apparently, he also "acquired" some books. You can read about it here.

Now, the same auction house has another book up for auction that was in our collection and given to us by Sir William Osler. This is so frustrating because there is nothing we can do about it, except try to buy back what was ours.

This is what the auction house has written:

Description:

William Osler
n.p., May 16, 1896
William Osler Superb Signed Book Vol. I, "Life & Letters of Oliver Wendell Holmes"

A hardcover volume of part of a biography of Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. (1809-1894), inscribed and signed by Sir William Osler (1849-1919), the celebrated Canadian doctor often referred to as the Father of Modern Medicine, as: "Presented to the Library of the / Medico-Chirurgical Faculty / By / Wm Osler / 5.16.96" on the first front loose endpaper. May 16, 1896. N.p. John T. Morse, Jr., First Edition, Volume I, "Life and Letters of Oliver Wendell Holmes in Two Volumes" (Boston: Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1896). With a bookplate from the "Library of the Medical and Chirurgical Faculty of Maryland" affixed to the front pastedown endpaper, with the donor identified in pen as "Dr. Wm Osler." [In Marcia Noyes' handwriting] With "Library of… Maryland" hand-stamps scattered throughout. Dark burgundy cloth-covered boards with a gilt upper text block and paper label on the spine. A blank printed Rx script belonging to Dr. Bernard J. Ferry of Calverton Pharmacy, Baltimore, Maryland is used as a bookmark at pg. 27. Minor wear and scuffs to the covers, and partial darkening of the spine label. Mostly even light toning within. Else near fine. With about a dozen illustrations with their original tissue guards. iii-vi; 1-358. 5.25" x 8.125" x 1.25." 8vo.

Vol. I of Morse's biography of Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. covers the period from his birth until about the 1860s. Dr. William Osler selected this book for donation with care, as he personally identified with much of Holmes's approach to modern medicine. In fact, Dr. William Osler is included in the present volume on pg. 188, in a quote from an address which Dr. Osler delivered before the Medical School at Johns Hopkins University on October 15, 1894. Dr. Osler said about Dr. Holmes: "He will always occupy a unique position in the affections of medical men…" Holmes, who was educated in the United States and abroad, embraced a more patient-centered approach. Holmes was also a committed medical reformer, lobbying for the importance of hygiene, and decrying medical "quackeries."

Dr. William Osler revolutionized the 19th C. study and practice of medicine by fundamentally changing how it was taught. Osler was one of the founding members of the Association of American Physicians and a founding professor of Johns Hopkins Hospital. One of the first doctors to lobby for residency training programs, Osler understood the importance of learning through hands-on experience, repetition, and practice. By emphasizing speaking to and listening to the patient, Osler advanced our understanding of pathology by underscoring the importance of medical history in positing a diagnosis. In this way, he also advocated for the most fundamental patient rights and reshaped the relationship between doctor and patient.

Osler's interest in teaching medicine inspired him to collect an enormous personal library of books related to medicine and the history of medicine. Osler willed his personal library to his alma mater, McGill University; the collection became the core of the Osler Library of the History of Medicine.

This is just so infuriating!