The Old Operating Theater
The museum known as The Old Operating Theater, which in Spanish comes to mean Museum of the Old Operating Theater, is located in the attic of the Church of Santo Tomás, right next to the Tower Bridge.
What can you see in this museum? Well, basically, everything related to the experimental surgery that was carried out in their facilities and that represents all the horror that took place before the beginning of medicine as a science.
Visit The Old Operating Theater
The Old Operating Theater is the oldest operating theater in the United Kingdom. It was built in 1822 but the Hospital of Santo Tomas as such is mentioned as early as 1215 when it was still a monastery of Augustinian monks. In this monastery poor people with illnesses were welcome to try to give them a treatment.
To give you an idea, let's say that rich people paid and were operated in their own kitchen but in the case of poor people it was not exactly like that. These people left their diseases and their body in the hands of people who carried out experiments with them and who were not 100% aware of what they were doing.
As a curiosity, we will comment that in the year 1822 it was operated without anesthesia but the patients were numbed with alcohol or opium. Can you imagine it? Better not.
The fact of thinking about an old operating room in which experiments are performed on the bodies of people who could not afford a more official surgery represents an idea, at least, curious. Perhaps at present it is difficult to imagine the bleeding that took place in places like the Church of Santo Tomas and for many it may be unpleasant, but the truth is that the exhibitions that take place in this museum you will not see anywhere else. So, if you really care about history and evolution, especially medicine, the visit to The Old Operating Theater is a must.
It is a highly recommended visit that will exceed your expectations. In addition, the exhibitions and the guides will know how to awaken your curiosity about the subject given that it is really interesting the things that are seen and heard there.
Location, time and prices
The Old Operating Theater Museum is located at 9A St. Thomas Street (9A St. Thomas Street). The nearest subway stop is London Bridge.
You can visit it from 10.30 am to 5 pm but, be careful, because if you travel on Christmas you should know that this museum remains closed between December 15 and January 5.
Regarding prices, admission will be free for London Pass holders, students will pay 5 pounds and adults will pay £ 6.20.
