About the lecture

In this module, we take a look at medicine and medicines before the discovery of antibiotics. In doing this, we see three key points: (i) medicine was a marketplace of many different treatments; (ii) medicines could not be relied upon to cure infection; and (iii) by the 1930s, new medicines were emerging.

About the lecturer

Dr. Robert Bud is Emeritus Keeper at The Science Museum in London. He has written widely on the history of science, with a particular in interest in the history of antibiotics. His book, Penicillin: Triumph and Tragedy, was published by Oxford University Press in 2007.