A System of Surgery – Samuel D. Gross – 1872 | 1400+ Anatomy Engravings

Samuel D. Gross’s A System of Surgery: Pathological, Diagnostic, Therapeutic and Operative is a foundational medical text. This edition, published in 1872, contains more than 1400 engravings and is considered one of the most substantial works of American surgery. Medical practitioners of the period relied on this set for reference and instruction.

According to Garrison-Morton, this book is “the most elaborate, if not the most complete treatise in the English language.”

Bibliographic Details

• Title: A System of Surgery: Pathological, Diagnostic, Therapeutic and Operative
• Author(s): Samuel D. Gross
• Publisher: Philadelphia: Henry C. Lea
• Edition: Fifth Edition, 1872
• Format: (4to), two-volume set
• Binding: Full leather, gilt spine title
• Size:  10.5 in x 7.25 in (26.7 cm x 18.4 cm)
• Collation:
  • Vol. I: xxviii, 33-1098 pp
  • Vol. II: xxviii, 17-1170 pp
• Illustrations: Over 1400 engraved images
• Contents Include:
  • Operative techniques organized by system
  • Pathological observations with illustrative plates
  • Descriptions of instruments and conditions
• Reference(s): Garrison-Morton 5607; Heirs of Hippocrates 931

Condition:

Very Good. Original leather bindings remain structurally sound with moderate rubbing. Gilt spine titling is intact. Pages are secure throughout both volumes with light aging and scattered foxing. All illustrations are present and well-defined.

Why Collect This?

• Referenced in key medical bibliographies
• Over 1400 engravings documenting period surgical tools and procedures

Item Number: #28916