Opinion
I stopped by the Medical Museum in the Heritage Park at Kiwi North this week and was amazed by what I saw. Among the thousands of antique objects and equipment on display are four devices that caught my eye, all beautifully encased and presented, all extremely popular in the early 20th century, and all now considered to be medical quackery.
The purpose of these machines was once highly regarded, and even today they look impressive. They promised incredible things like being able to cure anything, from asthma to rheumatism, gout, weak lungs, nervousness, hysteria, and even wrinkles, baldness and greying hair. These machines all used electricity to treat patients, with some emitting a soothing purple light while delivering recuperative sparks to an affected area. These treatments were popular largely because they came at a time when electricity was exciting, new and not completely understood.
Among the collections in the Medical Museum, promoted as being a “cure-all”, is a Fluvita Violet Wand and a Shelton Violet Ray. Violet ray therapy was developed from the discoveries and ideas of pioneering engineer Nikola Tesla. He suggested different wavelengths on the electromagnetic spectrum could be used to treat medical conditions. It did not take long before devices like these were being used to treat people’s ailments.