Spring Lancet with Case, 1800-1860

For centuries, doctors believed removing a person's excess or impure blood could heal certain diseases. A spring lancet was a popular bloodletting instrument used in the 18th and 19th centuries. Its sharp, spring-activated blade quickly punctured a vein allowing blood to flow. By the late 1800s, most physicians, armed with greater medical knowledge or a belief in milder therapeutic remedies, had abandoned the practice of bloodletting.