Ouevre Maternelle des Couveuses d’Enfants, Barcelona

Oeuvre Maternelle des Couveuses d’Enfants in Barcelona, or “Obra Maternal de Incubadoras para Criaturas” as it was known in Spain, was located at 34 Calle del Conde del Asalto. Based on a contemporary account, it appears to have opened for business on December 6, 1902. We do not know how long it persisted there.

After the opening, there was a full-page article by R. Mainar LaHuerta in “Alrededor del Mundo,” a local periodical, on December 19, 1902. Several of the pictures below are taken from that article, and a scan of the full article is also available as a PDF. The usual Lion Incubators were used, and there was a large heated room so the babies could be removed from their incubators on display and kept warm during breastfeeding.

“Incubator with a child inside.” Source: Alrededor del Mundo.

“Stove-heated chamber where the infants are nursed.” Source: Alrededor del Mundo.

“The Institution. The inventor, Dr. Lion, is in the foreground on the right. The last one on the left is Dr. Rodriguez Ruiz, director.” Source: Alrededor del Mundo.

Dr. Lion prepared one of his typical postcards for the Barcelona branch, as he did for his other permanent storefronts and many of his pavilions in expositions. Unlike the Paris postcards, which are everywhere on eBay, the Barcelona Obra Maternal postcards are quite scarce.

Scans of the December 19, 1902 full article in “Alrededor del Mundo” can be found below, and a PDF is available for viewing separately.

A similar but somewhat more factual article appeared in El Mundo Cientifico on January 1, 1903. Scans of the article can be found below. Source: Biblioteca Nacional de España.

One more press clipping. The following article appeared in Vida Galante on 7-1-1903. This one has a better view of the actual incubator setup. Source: Biblioteca Nacional de España.

General Information
- Dr. Alexandre Lion
- The Lion Incubator
- Oeuvre Maternelle des Couveuses d’Enfants, Paris
- Oeuvre Maternelle des Couveuses d’Enfants, New York
- Oeuvre Maternelle des Couveuses d’Enfants, Barcelona
- The Engineer and the Newborns, by W. A. Nelson and Paul L. Toubas and
Press Coverage
- La Maternité “Lion de Nice” pour Enfants Nés Avant Terme ou Débiles, by Dr. Ciaudo, 1895.
- Les Couveuses pour Enfants, Gazette Médicale de Paris, 1900
- Couveuses d’Enfants, La Maternité Lion, Paris, La Patrie, 1897
- Paris Letter: An Improved System of Incubators, by O. Jennings, Pediatrics 1:427-428, 1896
- Baby Incubators, The Strand Magazine, 1896, by James Walter Smith
- Human Infant Incubation: A True Fairy-Tale of Modern Science from Leslie’s Weekly, 1897
- The Saving of Human Life, Maternité Lion in NYC, The Literary Digest, 1898
- Immature Infants in France, from The Lancet, January 16, 1897, page 196.
- Alexandre Lion’s Incubator Charities in Europe (1894–1898) (The Embryo Project)
- Newspaper Articles about Lion’s Storefronts and Expositions
Maternité Lion Souvenir Booklets
- Oeuvre Maternelle des Couveuses d’Enfants , Paris Institute, Booklet Version #1 (appears to be ~1896)
- Oeuvre Maternelle des Couveuses d’Enfants , Paris Institute, Booklet Version #2 (appears to be ~1901)
- Pamphlet from Alexander Lion’s exhibit at the 1898 exhibition in Torino, Italy. (PDF supplied by Dr. Thijs Gras, Amsterdam)
Worlds Fairs and Expositions