The museum that houses one of the most iconic medicine-themed paintings of all time, "The Gross Clinic" by Thomas Eakins, is opening a new exhibition of posters called __Health for Sale__.
Compagnie de Fermiere's mineral water
Philadelphia Museum of ArtThe collection includes works depicting the "social plague" of syphilis, the benefits of aspirin, and the dangers of marijuana -- the "Weed with Roots in Hell."The posters in the exhibit were collected by William H. Helfand, a chemical engineer who worked for more than 30 years as an executive in pharmaceutical giant Merck's international operations division. His job with Merck took him to Paris, where he collected numerous medical posters.Helfand is a great collector of emphemera, says the exhibit's co-curator John Ittman. Aside from medical posters, he has collected thousands of items, such as labels from pharmaceutical bottles, postcards, and medical pamphlets.The posters -- ranging from those commissioned by wealthy...

Philadelphia Museum of Art





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