Spatula Mundani
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The Spatula Mundani was a surgical device invented in the 17th century by the London surgeon James Woodall to treat extreme cases of severe constipation where purgatives had failed.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Woodall believed that the cause of this malady was from scurvy, but speculation is that many of the cases were from the abuse of laudanum, a tincture of opium in alcohol commonly used at the time as a painkiller; opioid drugs are known to cause constipation by reducing gut motility.Template:Citation needed A drawing of the device is found in his 1617 book {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}.Template:Citation needed
The device was an iron tool slightly longer than 12 inches and consisted of a paddle at one end. The other end was spoon-shaped, with the center removed and a knob at the end.Template:Citation needed The spoon end was used to extract the "hard excrements" while the other was used for applying ointments, no doubt necessary after undergoing a procedure with this instrument.Template:Citation needed
The term mundani is apparently derived from the archaic term {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} which appeared in a dictionary from 1604 with the definition "to make clean".Template:Citation needed
On an archaeological dig at the Jamestown, Virginia, colonies a spatula mundani was found, and documents from 1608 report that it was part of a chest of surgeon's tools sent by Woodall to the colonies.<ref name=Jamestown>William M. Kelso Jamestown Rediscovery, Volume 8 Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities, 2004 pg. 44</ref>