Object type
auriscalpium
Culture/period
Materials
bronze
Technique
casting, moulding
Mint
Production date
1 / 201
Current location
MASPG
Archaeological site
Empúries
Township
Escala, l' (Europa, Espanya, Catalunya, Girona, Alt Empordà)
Dimensions
151 x 4 mm
Description
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The “auriscalpium” or “oricularium specillum” is a medical type of ear probe, which is made of a circular section stem, 15.1 cm long and 4 mm wide, an end finished in a point and the opposite end with a flat spoon with a rounded profile. Towards the upper end we find the stem divided by a trapezoidal piece with two holes to have two mobile pieces on each side. The two moving pieces are made of two twisted wires with the end finished in a rounded head. It comes from Empúries (L'Escala, Alt Empordà) and can be dated between the 1st and 2nd centuries AD.
Roman medical and surgical instruments were very varied and of high specialization. Among the museum's collections, for example, we can find a needle to operate cataracts, found in the villa: La Romana de Tolegassos, in Viladamat (Alt Empordà).
© Museu d'Arqueologia de Catalunya - Girona
Omeka ID
3160