'An Ornament To The City': The Royal Victorian Eye And Ear Hospital
Condition: SECONDHAND
This is a secondhand book. The jacket image is a photograph of the exact copy we have in stock. This image shows the condition of this book. Further condition remarks are below.
Condition remarks:
Book: Good
Jacket: Worn/faded, no tears
Pages: Good
Markings: Previous owner
Behind the grand façade of Melbourne's Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital lies more than a century of medical innovation, human resilience, and civic ambition — and Peter Donovan's meticulous institutional history brings every chapter of it to vivid life. 'An Ornament to the City' chronicles the founding, growth, and enduring legacy of one of Australia's most distinguished specialist hospitals, tracing its evolution from a modest colonial-era clinic into a world-class centre for ophthalmology and otolaryngology, all set against the backdrop of Melbourne's own dramatic transformation into a modern metropolis. Donovan writes with the precision of a historian and the warmth of a storyteller, weaving together the careers of pioneering surgeons, the struggles of patients, and the political machinations of hospital governance into a seamless narrative. The work argues that the hospital's story is inseparable from the broader story of Australian medicine and urban identity, illustrating how institutions of healing can become as culturally significant as the cities that house them. For readers with an interest in medical history, Australian social history, or the architecture of civic life, this is an indispensable and richly rewarding account — one that leaves you wondering just how many other such ornaments remain undocumented and unsung.
Author: Peter Donovan
Format: Hardback
Published: 1992, Self Published
Genre: History
Condition remarks:
Book: Good
Jacket: Worn/faded, no tears
Pages: Good
Markings: Previous owner
Behind the grand façade of Melbourne's Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital lies more than a century of medical innovation, human resilience, and civic ambition — and Peter Donovan's meticulous institutional history brings every chapter of it to vivid life. 'An Ornament to the City' chronicles the founding, growth, and enduring legacy of one of Australia's most distinguished specialist hospitals, tracing its evolution from a modest colonial-era clinic into a world-class centre for ophthalmology and otolaryngology, all set against the backdrop of Melbourne's own dramatic transformation into a modern metropolis. Donovan writes with the precision of a historian and the warmth of a storyteller, weaving together the careers of pioneering surgeons, the struggles of patients, and the political machinations of hospital governance into a seamless narrative. The work argues that the hospital's story is inseparable from the broader story of Australian medicine and urban identity, illustrating how institutions of healing can become as culturally significant as the cities that house them. For readers with an interest in medical history, Australian social history, or the architecture of civic life, this is an indispensable and richly rewarding account — one that leaves you wondering just how many other such ornaments remain undocumented and unsung.