A British veteran uses a specially designed artificial arm to hammer a nail, 1942. The prosthetic was supplied by England’s Ministry of Pensions, created in the midst of WWI to help vets and their dependents.
Sum of the Parts: Prosthetics Through the Centuries
People have been devising fake arms, legs, noses and virtually every other body part for centuries. Here, a quick look at some of the devices that humans have invented to replace -- or at least approximate -- the irreplaceable.
Hammer Hand
Full List
Prosthetics
- Tycho Brahe’s Nose
- Prosthetic Eyes
- Prosthetic Ear
- Hammer Hand
- Facial Prosthetics
- Variety of Prostheses
- Artificial Leg, Italy
- Artificial Arms, Real Saw
- Artificial Noses
- Prosthetic Arms for Thalidomide Kids
- Artificial Foot
- Jaipur Foot, Interior View
- Prosthetic Hand With Fork
- Prosthetic Leg
- Prosthetic Breast
- False Eye
- Life-Like Arm, With Tattoo
- False Teeth
- WWI-Era Facial Prostheses
- The Full Prosthetic: Bionic Man