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Words and Deeds in American History
Raised as a Russian nobleman and treated by a series of neurologists for depression, Sergius Pankejeff (1887-1979) was twice analyzed by Viennese psychologist Sigmund Freud (1856- 1939), whose theories about the motivations and workings of the human mind revolutionized, for many, the meaning of human behavior. Pankejeff was one of Freud's best-known patients and has become famous in psychoanalytic history as the "Wolf-Man," because of his childhood dreams involving wolves and his self- revelatory painting of a pack of wolves sitting in a tree. Information about Pankejeff and his treatment by Freud may be found in his own collection of papers and in the voluminous Sigmund Freud Collection, both of which are held by the Manuscript Division.
Apparently in addition to treating Pankejeff, Freud also had dealings with the patient's family, as is suggested by the prescription shown here, which Freud wrote for Pankejeff's wife, Therese. Using one of his typical prescription blanks, Freud prescribed a solution of iodine in absolute (97 pure) alcohol for external use. Such a solution was typically used as a counter-irritant for skin problems. Few off-the-shelf medicines were available in the early 1900s, and pharmacists routinely hand-mixed most of the items they dispensed, following the guidelines given to them by the prescribing doctor.
The prescription is just one of the more than forty thousand items that make up the division's Freud Collection. In addition to holograph drafts of many of Freud's books and articles, the collection contains correspondence (including family and personal letters), school and university materials, patient case files, and miscellaneous materials relating to Freud and his associates and to the history of psychoanalysis. The Library's acquisition of the largest extant Freud collection is in itself an unusual story. In the aftermath of World War II, a group of psychoanalysts recognized that Freud's legacy was being dissipated because he kept no copies of his outgoing correspondence. Led by Dr. Kurt Eissler (1908- ) in New York, a group of Freud's admirers took action and created the Sigmund Freud Archives dedicated to collecting and preserving surviving Freud manuscripts. Lacking space and archival expertise, the group concluded an agreement in 1951 with Librarian of Congress Luther Harris Evans (1902-1981) to transfer its holdings to the Library. Since then the Sigmund Freud Archives has continued to enrich the Library's collections by obtaining Freud items and by encouraging other analysts to donate their papers. The most substantial addition to the collection came from Freud's daughter, Anna Freud (1895-1982), who bequeathed to the Library a substantial body of her father's papers as well as her own important collection documenting her career as a psychologist following in her famous father's footsteps.
Marvin W. Kranz, Manuscript Division
For Additional Information
For additional information on the Sigmund Freud Collection, you can leave this site and read a summary catalog record for the collection.
Reproduction Number:
A37 (color slide)
Related Terms:
Eissler, K. R. (Kurt Robert) (1908- ) | Evans, Luther Harris (1902-1981) | Freud, Anna (1895-1982) | Freud, Sigmund (1856-1939) | Medicine | Pankejeff, Sergius (1887-1979) | Prescriptions | Psychoanalysts | Sigmund Freud Archives
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