View Grahams Celestial Bed
Type: Medical Quackery.
Summary: During the eighteenth century, James Graham advertised an “electric bed” as a cure-all.
A practitioner of Electric Medicine at work. From Johann Gottlieb Schaeffer, Die electrische Medicin (Regensburg, 1766).James Graham was one of the most notorious quacks of the 18th century. He was also extremely popular, attracting scores of followers who swore by the efficacy of his ‘electric medicine.’
Graham was born in England in 1745, the son of a saddler. He studied medicine at Edinburgh, and though he never completed his studies there, he called himself a doctor anyway.
‘Dr. Graham’ moved to America while he was in his 20s. He travelled around for a while before settling in Philadelphia where he advertised himself as an eye specialist. While in Philadelphia, he became acquainted with Benjamin Franklin’s electrical experiments, and he grew convinced that electricity was the cure for all ills.
The Temple of Health
Emma LyonIn 1775 Graham moved back to London where he began practicing his ‘electric medicine’ and attracting a rich and famous clientele. His therapy consisted of delivering a jolt of electricity to patients through a variety of electrical crowns and thrones.
Emboldened by his success, Graham converted a large house in an opulent section of London into a magnificent Temple of Health. The doors of this temple opened in August, 1779, and patients began pouring in.
A variety of delights awaited those willing to pay the two-guinea entrance fee. They could wander through ornately furnished rooms, breathe in the perfumed air, listen to music or hear Graham delivering lectures on health, buy medicines, inspect the ‘medico-electrical apparatus,’ or watch scantily-clad young women pose among the statues. One of the young women Graham employed was Emma Lyon, who in later years would marry Sir William Hamilton and become Lord Horatio Nelson’s lover.
The Celestial Bed
Graham’s Celestial BedThe centerpiece of the Temple of Health was the ‘Celestial Bed,’ which was reserved for those able to afford the fee of