Chinese woodcut: Abscesses -- postauricular abscesses, etc.

Woodcut illustrating the 17th century text Xu Ping waike zhengzong (Orthodox Manual of External Medicine with Commentary by Xu Dachun), from an edition published in 1860 (10th year of the Xianfeng reign period of the Qing dynasty).

Right-hand illustration:

Shirong zheng (a kind of tumour of the neck) belongs to the category of ulcer and abscess diseases (yongju bing). It is found in front of and behind the ear, and at the nape of the neck. In the early stages, it is like a globule of phlegm, but in the later stages, it becomes hard and gradually grows to resemble a stone. When it is lanced, there is no pus; only watery blood is discharged, and the hardness is not diminished. It is exceedingly painful. The prognosis is described as '100 die and one lives'. The illustration also shows the location of shou fa bei (abscesses on the back of the hand), hengxuan (buboes) and nangyong zheng (scrotal abscess syndrome). With shoubei fa (abscesses on the back of the hand), lesions are found at the zhongzhu (Central Islet) and yemen (Fluid Portal) points on the back of the hand. Hengxuan refers to syphilitic sores, found in the groin. Nangyong refers to abscesses of the scrotum.

Left-hand illustration:

Erhou fa zheng (postauricular abscess syndrome) also belongs to the category of ulcer and abscess diseases. This is a type of abscess with a head or carbuncle found behind the ear. If the lesion is raised and inflamed, the prognosis is favourable; if it is hard and sunken and there is no pus, the prognosis is poor.

RIGHT-HAND ILLUSTRATION: Right-hand illustration: Shirong zheng [a kind of tumour of the neck] appears in front of and behind the ear, and at the nape of the neck. In the early stages, it is like a globule of phlegm, but in the later stages it is hard and gradually increases in size, becoming like a stone. When it is lanced, there is no pus, but only watery blood is discharged, and the hardness is not diminished. It is exceedingly swollen and painful. It is indeed a disease where a hundred die and one lives. Shirong zheng; shoubei fa [abscesses on the back of the hand]; hengxuan [buboes, syphilitic sores]; nang yong (scrotal abscesses). LEFT-HAND ILLUSTRATION: Left-hand illustration: Erhou fa [postauricular lesion]; if it comes to a head and is raised and inflamed, [the patient] will live; if it is hard and sunken and there is no pus, [the patient] will die.