A Handy-Book of Ophthalmic Surgery – Laurence & Moon – 1866 | Eye Disease Treatment

A Handy-Book of Ophthalmic Surgery for the Use of Practitioners by John Zachariah Laurence and Robert Charles Moon was published in Philadelphia by Lea in 1866. This early English-language guide reflects the establishment of ophthalmology as a distinct branch of medical study in the mid-nineteenth century. The authors, both noted London ophthalmologists, present clear practical instructions for physicians treating disorders of the eye. The volume covers examination techniques and a range of ocular diseases, including conditions of the eyelids, lacrymal apparatus, muscles, conjunctiva, cornea, iris, and crystalline lens. It also includes sections on glaucoma, visual assessment, and optical defects.

Bibliographic Details

• Title: A Handy-Book of Ophthalmic Surgery for the Use of Practitioners
• Author(s): John Zachariah Laurence; Robert Charles Moon
• Publisher: Lea, Philadelphia
• Edition: First American edition, 1866.
• Format: (8vo), single volume
• Binding: Original publisher’s cloth
• Size:  9.25 in x 6.25 in (23.5 cm x 15.9 cm)
• Collation: vi, 191, [32] pp.
• Provenance: United States Hospital Department – stamp on spine
  • Medical books with this stamp are linked to wartime medicine and should be considered of the utmost value compared to the same book without such provenance
• Contents Include:
  • Methods of examining the eye
  • Diseases of the eyelids, lacrymal apparatus, and ocular muscles
  • Conditions of the conjunctiva, cornea, and iris
  • The crystalline lens and its pathology
  • Sections on glaucoma, vision, and optical defects

Condition:

Good. Hardcover binding tight and secure with visible cloth staining and moderate rubbing at corners and edges. Interior pages evenly toned with occasional handling marks. Text block complete and stable with no noted loss of content.

Why Collect This?

• Previously owned by the United States Hospital Department
• Foundational work in 19th-century ophthalmology
• Authored by the physicians associated with Laurence-Moon syndrome
• Early American imprint of a British medical text

Item Number: # 29485