Eighteenth Century Midwife Training Mannequin

Angélique Marguerite Le Boursier du Coudray (1714-1794) was the midwife of the court of French King Louis XV. She was famous for her skills in that trade and highly sought after as a teacher. Madame du Coudray traveled all over France, training as many as 10,000 women to bring babies and mothers through the childbirth process safely. This was one of her training aids--a dummy that simulates childbirth.

Link -via The Oddment Emporium

(Photo: Ministry of Culture, France)