TK 36 - Detail (3).jpg [4/20] Title: Detail of Medical Instruments (III) - Thangka Thirty-Six Caption: The first two instruments from the top of the panel downwards are different types of reed-pipes used to remove foreign bodies from the body. The instrument with a mouth as fine as a swan's beak (top) along with the second reed-pipe (middle) are used for extracting pus and foreign items from deep wounds. The third item down on the far left is a "sandpiper-beaked" forcep used to extract objects from muscles, tendons and ligaments. At the far right of this panel, there are three more instruments. The first tool is a tweezer used to extract dead vessels and ligaments from the body - it has fine rings for the practitioner to hold the instrument. The second tool down is a lancet shaped like a sparrow's feather - this is the first in a series of lancets (essentially sharp knifes with different shapes), which continues into the next two photographs. This particular lancet is used to cut muscles and for bloodletting. The third tool is a scalpel which is "supine," meaning the sharp edge is on the convex side. It is used to make incisions in the hollow viscera and the sharp tip is for bloodletting areas around the cubital (elbow) and neck. Sources and Further Reading: Bhagwan Dash: pg. 7-8 Dorje & Meyer: pg. 83 & 239 Jingfeng: pg. 253