VOL. XXXI.] PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. 501 



dry and thin constitution, but otherwise healthful and robust, died at the age 

 of 94, after she had lived a widow 40 years. 



Now 46 years before her death she declared herself to be with child, and 

 had all the usual signs of pregnancy. At the end of her reckoning the waters 

 came away, and she was taken with the pains of labour, which continued on 

 her about 7 weeks, and then went off on using some medicines given her by a 

 surgeon. Some time after she recovered her perfect health, except only that 

 her belly continued swelled, and that now and then, on any exercise, she felt 

 a little pain in the lower part of it. She was after this twice brought to bed, 

 the first time of a son, and afterwards of a daughter. But still she was firmly 

 persuaded that she was not yet delivered of what she first went with, and 

 desired her body to be opened after her death. Which being done accordingly, 

 there was found within her a hard mass of the form and size of a large ninepin 

 bowl; but the surgeon had not the precaution to observe whether it lay in the 

 uterus or without it, and for want of better instruments, he broke it open with 

 the blow of a hatchet. This ball, with the contents of it, are represented in 

 figures 10 and 11 of plate 13. 



In fig. 10, A shows a part of the integument, which adhered to a spongy 

 fleshy substance ; which at first seemed to be a mass of cartilage, but was after- 

 wards found to be entirely bony; bbb ccc is the membranous part, which was 

 bloody; dddd the opening made by the hatchet; eeeee another part of the 

 integument, appearing entirely bony, with several prominences; f a contusion 

 occasioned by the rude manner of opening it, where there appeared some putre- 

 fied membranes. 



In fig. 1 1, AAA show the integument, or substance inclosing the foetus ; b 

 the foetus ; c a depression, or hollowness on the right cheek ; « the nose turn- 

 ing up; (3 the mouth flatted, but not so wide as it is here represented; y the 

 eye closed up; ^ the ear; dd the arms, of which the right was the larger, and 

 the two joints of that thumb were plainly to be seen ; e the protuberance of the 

 knee; p part of the funiculus umbilicalis torn, but still adhering to the navel; 

 GG part of the same funiculus, fastened to the bony part of the integument; 

 H the breast; i the mark of an incision into the left side, where the flesh 

 appeared red, but was dry, and looked like smoked beef. 



Fig. 12 represents two ribs from the left side, of their natural substance, 



colour, and size; aa the part joining to the vertebrae; bb to the sternum. 



This piece is preserved in the cabinet of rarities of the Duke of Wirtemberg. 



Dr. Camerarius, professor at Tubingen, in a letter upon this subject, takes 



notice, that the surgeon found this mass in a cavity on the woman's left side, 



and that it adhered to the membranes of that cavity by the intervention of a 



