This process, which has been successfully employed in Europe
for a long time, for the purpose of embalming bodies and for
the preservation of anatomical preparations, is still practised
extensively, owing to the cheapness of the materials used and to the
simplicity of the modus operandi.
The embalming fluid in this instance is composed as follows, viz.:
Sulphate of alumina, 4 pounds.
Arsenious acid, 4 ounces.
Creasote, 4 ounces.
Water, 1 gallon.
To prepare this fluid, an explanation of its constituents is required.
There are two different kinds of arsenious acid, the opaque and the
transparent. This latter variety (the transparent) should be selected
in preference to the other, on account of its greater solubility;
the acid must also be procured in crystals, and not in powder, as it
will, in the first place, dissolve quicker, and will not be liable to
be adulterated. The water must then be heated to 55°, and the acid
dissolved in it. The sulphate of alumina is then to be added, and,
after being completely dissolved, let the solution cool off to the
usual temperature; then add the creasote, and, after stirring gently,
the solution is ready for use.
Lay the body on an inclined board, as described in a former chapter,
and, after thoroughly cleansing with water and soap, saturate well
with a concentrated solution of alum; the body should be kept well
moistened with the solution, as prescribed in the processes of
embalming already given, until the operation is completed.
Through an opening made in the skin of the abdomen, and immediately
over the transverse part of the colon, the bowels and the stomach
will then be revealed, which must be emptied of their contents and
properly cleaned, and injected with the above preparation.
After the contents of the abdomen have thus been treated, the whole
abdominal viscera is to be heavily sprinkled over with tannic acid,
until the acid forms a layer about one-half inch in thickness between
the bowels and the skin of the abdomen; the flaps of the skin are
then brought together and neatly sewed up.
The femoral vein is then opened. The femoral vein ascends the thigh
in the sheath of the femoral artery, and, entering the pelvis beneath
Poupart’s ligament, becomes the external iliac vein. In the lower
part of its course, it is situated on the outer side of the artery;
it then becomes placed behind that vessel, and at Poupart’s ligament
lies to the inner side. It receives the muscular veins and propenda,
and, through the saphenous opening, the internal saphenous vein.
The blood, in some cases, will issue very freely, and the flow of it
must continue until the embalming fluid makes its appearance.
To inject the circulatory system, extend the left arm at a right
angle with the body, and open the axilliary artery about three
inches from the arm-pit. The axilliary artery is a continuation of
the sub-clavian artery; it passes through the axilla or arm-pit
into the arm, and is called the axilliary artery; that part of its
continuation into the upper arm is called the brachial artery, and in
the fore arm it divides into the radial and ulnar arteries, which are
distributed to the hand and fingers.
Through the opening thus made in the axilliary artery two gallons of
embalming fluid may be injected, or such quantity as may be found
necessary to completely fill the arterial and venous systems.
After the blood has ceased to flow from the opening in the femoral
vein, the wounds must be sewed up, and the body, anointed with the
solution, left to dry in a cool, well ventilated place.
The surface of the body and also the face may be mottled in some
places with white spots, but the skin will soon assume a uniform
color, and the blotches will disappear.
After the solution on the body has become sufficiently dry and has
penetrated the pores of the skin, the excess of moisture must be
wiped off with a clean towel.
The nostrils should be hermetically sealed, by introducing into them
some cotton, well saturated with gum shellac dissolved in alcohol.
The eyes must be well closed, and, if no other means at hand, the
lids must be sewn together with a small circular needle, and some
silk, saturated in spirits of turpentine.
The body is then saturated with a thin coating of turpentine; and
after the turpentine is dry, the clothing can be put on, and the body
is then ready for interment.
As shown by the preceding, this process is very simple, and has given
satisfactory results in all cases, although the amount of embalming
liquid and the composition thereof vary in all cases, and according
to the temperature of the season and country.
For instance, if the body to be embalmed is that of a very fleshy
person, and it be in the summer season, when animal substances are
more prone to putrefy than at other seasons, the embalming fluid must
be altered as follows, in its quantitative composition:
Sulphate of alumina, 6 pounds.
Arsenious acid, transparent, 4 ounces.
Creasote, 6 ounces.
Water, 1 gallon.
For the minor parts of this process, as, for instance, the closing of
the eyes, mouth, etc., the reader is referred to previous processes
already given in former chapters.
The most reliable composition yet found for embalming purposes,
and the one which has given the most satisfactory results, is the
following:
Alcohol, one gallon; dissolve into it eight ounces of corrosive
sublimate, and, after complete solution, add two pounds of creasote.
This solution, for injecting purposes, has never failed to accomplish
the purpose, and has given the most astonishing results. The only
objection to its use, but one which does not in reality carry any
weight with it, is the fact that the solution will produce a white
scar on the skin of the body wherever it may be dropped; but a
very moderate amount of care in the use of it will preclude the
possibility of such an accident.
The embalming of bodies by injection has so far occupied our
attention. We will hereafter pass briefly in review the process of
maceration employed in the preservation of bodies.