Pharmacy History
Artefacts: Putting a lid on it
Ralph Tapping looks back at the long and detailed history of ceramic pots in pharmacy These days creams, ointments, gels and many foodstuffs are presented in glass screw-capped jars with …
Artefacts: plasters & poultices
One hundred years ago preparations to soothe and medicate the skin were regularly prescribed and compounded, including ointments, creams, plasters and poultices Preparing a plaster involved spreading a pliable base …
Only in the USA!
A very strange product ad emerges from the past. It could only come from the home of the brave, writes Ralph Tapping With all the political turmoil going on in …
Losing our bottle
Whatever happened to those fancy dispensary stock bottles that were so familiar sixty years ago, asks Ralph Tapping? The Whittal Tatum & Co jars and bottles, with their glass labels, …
Of pomades & bear’s grease
Modern manscaped metrosexuals were not the first to males to use complex cosmetics. Ralph Tapping explores historic examples of male hair-care products Bear’s grease was popular in England from the …
What happened to chemist-only?
A trip down memory lane to look at how government, business and pharmacy itself helped sink the front-of-shop ‘chemist only’ product, by Ralph Tapping Younger pharmacists will have some difficulty …
A significant discovery
A pharmacy closure brings to light a treasure of historic artefacts and facts, writes Ralph Tapping In 1956 when I started out on my career in pharmacy at a pharmacy …
Artefact: Cork and tile
Pharmacy was a more labor-intensive job than it is now, and to indicate membership of the Royal Society of Apothecaries a lavishly but symbolic tile was hung outside the pharmacy …
Artefacts: Homeopathic History
Surviving the opposition of the establishment, by Ralph Tapping Eighteenth century German physician Samuel Hahnemann ( 1755-1843 ) first coined the word “homeopathy” ( “homeos” in Greek means “similar” and …
Women in pharmacy: Key dates in history
As part of our ongoing series on women in pharmacy, we thought we’d step back in time to look at some key dates highlighting women’s role in shaping the profession …
A hidden gem: SAVORY & MOORE PHARMACY
The University of Melbourne hides a treasure house of pharmacy history Tucked away close to the Royal Melbourne Hospital in Royal Parade lies the Brownless Biomedical Library, University of Melbourne, …
AJP: 130 years at the heart of pharmacy
A lot has changed in the world since the AJP first landed in people’s mailboxes back in 1886… Now – following the demise of The Bulletin – the oldest continuously …