Help deciphering old-timey coroner's inquest?
November 21, 2014 8:11 AM Subscribe
I'm trying to transcribe an old-time coroner's inquest and, between the cursive script and the medical terms, I'm having difficulty with some words. Can you help?
[part 1, part 2 (blurry)]
Here's what I have so far:
[part 1, part 2 (blurry)]
Here's what I have so far:
A cicatrix as of a gun shot wound is one inch below the angle of the left inferior maxillary bone. The right eye was [unintelligble][unintelligble] and the [unintelligble] horizontally discolored- pupils about normal.Bonus: If anyone could bang out a coroner's diagram of the wounds as described, that would be doubly awesome.
No bones were broken and his death was caused by strangulation.
In the case of PERSON TWO I observed six cicratices apparently from gun shot wounds. No 1 near ext angle of right eye at [unintelligble] of eyebrow cicatrix. No 2 at tip of nose left side. No. 3 - one inch left of angle of nose. No. 4 is middle of left clavicle (bullet or shot appears to be [unintelligble] movable(?)), No 5 - one inch back of middle of left clavicle above and two inches [unintelligble] & cicatrix No 4.
No 6 - one half inch above angle of [unintelligble] [unintelligble] maxillary.
The right eye was transversely suffused and the sclerotic [sic--likely means sclera] horizontally discolored
No 1 near ext angle of right eye at extremity of eyebrow cicatrix.
No 4 is middle of left clavicle (bullet or shot appears to be present and moveable
No 5 one inch back of middle of left clavicle above and two inches (posterior?) to cicatrix No 4
No 6 one half inch above angle of right ??.
posted by The Elusive Architeuthis at 8:21 AM on November 21, 2014 [2 favorites]
No 1 near ext angle of right eye at extremity of eyebrow cicatrix.
No 4 is middle of left clavicle (bullet or shot appears to be present and moveable
No 5 one inch back of middle of left clavicle above and two inches (posterior?) to cicatrix No 4
No 6 one half inch above angle of right ??.
posted by The Elusive Architeuthis at 8:21 AM on November 21, 2014 [2 favorites]
A cicatrix as of a gun shot wound is one inch below the angle of the left inferior maxillary bone. The right eye was transversely suffused and the sclerotic horizontally discolored- pupils about normal.
No bones were broken and his death was caused by strangulation.
In the case of PERSON TWO I observed six cicratices apparently from gun shot wounds. No 1 near ext angle of right eye at extremity of eyebrow cicatrix. No 2 at tip of nose left side. No. 3 - one inch left of angle of nose. No. 4 is middle of left clavicle (bullet or shot appears to be present & removable (not sure about this one)), No 5 - one inch back of middle of left clavicle above and two inches [unintelligble] & cicatrix No 4.
No 6 - one half inch above angle of left [unintelligble] maxillary.
Can you post a better second photo?
posted by Liesl at 8:22 AM on November 21, 2014
No bones were broken and his death was caused by strangulation.
In the case of PERSON TWO I observed six cicratices apparently from gun shot wounds. No 1 near ext angle of right eye at extremity of eyebrow cicatrix. No 2 at tip of nose left side. No. 3 - one inch left of angle of nose. No. 4 is middle of left clavicle (bullet or shot appears to be present & removable (not sure about this one)), No 5 - one inch back of middle of left clavicle above and two inches [unintelligble] & cicatrix No 4.
No 6 - one half inch above angle of left [unintelligble] maxillary.
Can you post a better second photo?
posted by Liesl at 8:22 AM on November 21, 2014
This is a suggestion rather than a deciphering, but (depending on the date/origin of your inquest report) using the online edition of Gray's Anatomy to do a find on the terms you can decipher might help suggest specific possibilities for how those words are used in medical terminology; it may narrow down potential matches for the illegible words.
posted by MonkeyToes at 8:36 AM on November 21, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by MonkeyToes at 8:36 AM on November 21, 2014 [1 favorite]
Best answer: This is my reading (though a better image of part 2 would be helpful to confirm that part):
A cicatrix as of a gun shot wound is one inch below the angle of the left inferior maxillary bone. The right eye was transversely suffused and the sclerotic horizontally discolored- pupils about normal.
No bones were broken and his death was caused by strangulation.
In the case of PERSON TWO I observed six cicatrices apparently from gun shot wounds. No 1 near ext angle of right eye at extremity of eyebrow cicatrix. No 2 at tip of nose left side. No. 3 - one inch left of angle of nose. No. 4 in middle of left clavicle (bullet or shot appears to be present & movable), No 5 - one inch back of middle of left clavicle above and two inches posterior to cicatrix No 4.
No 6 - one half inch above angle of left Inf maxillary.
posted by gudrun at 8:41 AM on November 21, 2014 [2 favorites]
A cicatrix as of a gun shot wound is one inch below the angle of the left inferior maxillary bone. The right eye was transversely suffused and the sclerotic horizontally discolored- pupils about normal.
No bones were broken and his death was caused by strangulation.
In the case of PERSON TWO I observed six cicatrices apparently from gun shot wounds. No 1 near ext angle of right eye at extremity of eyebrow cicatrix. No 2 at tip of nose left side. No. 3 - one inch left of angle of nose. No. 4 in middle of left clavicle (bullet or shot appears to be present & movable), No 5 - one inch back of middle of left clavicle above and two inches posterior to cicatrix No 4.
No 6 - one half inch above angle of left Inf maxillary.
posted by gudrun at 8:41 AM on November 21, 2014 [2 favorites]
looking at Picture 2 again I think No. 6 says left Inf[erior] maxillary rather than right as I initially thought.
posted by The Elusive Architeuthis at 12:24 PM on November 21, 2014
posted by The Elusive Architeuthis at 12:24 PM on November 21, 2014
Best answer: cicatrix: a scar resulting from formation and contraction of fibrous tissue in a wound
Maxillary bone is jaw bone, usually upper jaw bone but "inferior maxillary" might mean the lower jaw bone.
Clavicle is collarbone.
I am not entirely sure that all of this is accurate but this looks like the best transcription to me:
Maxillary bone is jaw bone, usually upper jaw bone but "inferior maxillary" might mean the lower jaw bone.
Clavicle is collarbone.
I am not entirely sure that all of this is accurate but this looks like the best transcription to me:
cicatrix as of a gun shot wound is one inch below the angle of the left inferior maxillary bone. The right eye was transversely suffused and the sclerotic horizontally discolored- pupils about normal.In laymen’s terms, I think it would mean:
No bones were broken and his death was caused by strangulation.
In the case of PERSON TWO I observed six cicatrices apparently from gun shot wounds. No 1 near ext angle of right eye at extremity of eyebrow cicatrix. No 2 at tip of nose left side. No. 3 - one inch left of angle of nose. No. 4 in middle of left clavicle (bullet or shot appears to be present & movable), No 5 - one inch back of middle of left clavicle above and two inches posterior to cicatrix No 4.
No 6 - one half inch above angle of left Inf maxillary
Old fibrous scar as of a gun shot wound is one inch below the angle of the left lower jaw bone. The right eye was diagonally discolored as if by spread of a liquid and (either: the sclera of the eye horizontally discolored OR: the hardened part horizontally discolored) – pupils about normal.posted by Michele in California at 12:56 PM on November 21, 2014
No bones were broken and his death was caused by strangulation.
In the case of PERSON TWO I observed six fibrous scars apparently from gun shot wounds. No 1 near the outside angle of the right eye at the end of the eyebrow. Scar No. 2 at tip of nose, left side. No. 3 – one inch left of angle of nose. No. 4 in middle of left collar bone (bullet or shot appears to still be in there and is movable), No 5 – one inch back of middle of left collarbone and two inches behind scar No 4.
No 6 – one half inch above angle of left lower jawbone
Response by poster: I can probably get a better photo but not right away, I don't have access to the originals at the moment.
Any takers on the coroner's diagrams based on the descriptions?
posted by entropicamericana at 12:58 PM on November 21, 2014
Any takers on the coroner's diagrams based on the descriptions?
posted by entropicamericana at 12:58 PM on November 21, 2014
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Only had time to look at Part 1...sorry.
posted by kuanes at 8:18 AM on November 21, 2014