[X-Ray of a Human Hand Making a Fist]

The mysterious new form of radiation known as the X-ray, discovered in 1895 by the German engineer, Wilhelm Röntgen, immediately became an international sensation. Popular interest in X-rays spread through public exhibitions and lectures, where volunteers from the audience could have their hands, feet, or purses X-rayed. Arthur-Honoré Radiguet was the premier manufacturer and distributor of X-ray equipment in France. He also produced hundreds of X-ray photographs, which he dubbed the “Musée Radiographique Radiguet” and distributed in the form of paper prints or glass transparencies to be projected in darkened lecture rooms. This object is from a set of nine transparencies which includes X-ray images of human hands, jewelry, and small reptiles. Unfortunately, Radiguet’s experiments with X-ray photography carried a heavy price. He suffered from radiation poisoning for several years before succumbing to cancer at the age of fifty-six.