1890s-1900.]. Small 4to, ff. 13; 21; 12; 11; 13; 6; 13; 7 (10e leçon); 7 (11 annexe, one leaf detached); 9, (8e leçon); 12; 9 (11e); 10; 19 (leaf 6 torn, and 8 detached); 4 (Annexe à la leçon 14); 7 (14); 29; 12 (but comprised of 6 numbered double-page tables); 21; 21; 23 (small tear to fore-edge of leaf 7); 18 (20ème leçon); in lithograph throughout reproducing original manuscript notes (seemingly in varying hands) together with a single hand-drawn illustrations; paper a little browned due to quality, with some occasional light foxing and spotting throughout, with a few small tears as previously noted but without interruption of text, otherwise clean and crisp; in contemporary black sheep backed purple marbled boards, spine ruled and lettered in gilt, though erroneously spelling Sébileau as ‘Sibileau’, head and tail of spine slightly bumped, with some light scuffing to spine and surfaces, extremities bumped and lightly rubbed with some wear to upper corners; a good copy. Uncommon volume of bound course-notes on special pathology in relation to otolaryngology, reproduced in facsimile using a form of lithographic printing to capture the original manuscript notes and neatly hand-drawn illustrations.
The course notes are divided into 20 ‘leçons’, a couple of which have short additional appendixes, and appear to cover a complete year of study. Topics under instruction include: cleft lip, branchial arches, congenital neck cysts, mandibular fracture, lower jaw dislocation, peripharyngeal abscesses, maxillary fractures, submandibular lymphadenopathy, nasopharyngeal polyps, soft palate paralysis, lingual syphilis, tongue ulcerations, parotid tumours, and ranula cysts.
The course notes have been bound together, presumably by the original, sadly anonymous, owner with the spine stamped in gilt with the name ‘Sibileau’. Taking into account the subject matter, we believe this to be incorrectly spelt, and that the course notes are in fact based upon lectures given by the French surgeon and ENT specialist Pierre Sébilleau (1860-1953). His early career was spent as an interne in hospitals in Bordeaux and Paris, where from 1888 he worked as an anatomical prosector. He subsequently became a surgeon at the Hôpital Lariboisière, specialising in the field of otorhinolaryngology. In 1893 he became an associate to the Faculty of Medicine in Paris, and according to volume 14 of the journal l’Odontologie, by 1894 he was in charge of the course on special pathology at the Dental School, which formed part of the preparatory course for obtaining the diploma of dental surgeon. It seems likely, therefore, that the present set of notes relates to that course. Considered to be an eminent professor in his field, he was later to be appointed as editor-in-chief of La Gazette Médicale de Paris.