Books and Babies: Communicating Reproduction - in pictures

The history of birth control is political. This 1986 poster from China encourages the use of contraception to conform to the ‘one-child’ policy adopted in 1978 Photograph: IISH Stefan R. Landsberger Collection/Babies & Books Exhibition A chamber used to incubate human embryos during the development of in vitro fertilisation (IVF) in the 1970s. For such a crucial device it is surprisingly makeshift, having been adapted from a standard laboratory desiccator Photograph: Babies & Books Exhibition ‘Every 15 seconds $100 of your money goes for the care of persons with bad heredity’. In the 1920s, the American Eugenics Society displayed posters like this to encourage ‘fitter family’ contests Photograph: Babies & Books Exhibition William Hunter’s 1774 depiction of the uterus is striking in its graphic detail. The dismembered abdomen serves to separate sex from reproductive anatomy Photograph: Syndics of Cambridge University Library/Babies & Books Exhibition Aristotle’s 'masterpiece' was neither by Aristotle nor a masterpiece. Pasted together from two earlier texts in 1684, its espousal of the importance of pleasure to conception reserved its place in Soho sex shops right up to the 1930s Photograph: Private Collection/Babies & Books Exhibition This 16th century pamphlet depicts a monstrous creature, dubbed ‘Pope-ass’, in front of the Castel Sant’Angelo in Rome. Teratology (encompassing the study of human birth defects) has a history of being used to satisfy political and religious ends Photograph: Syndics of Cambridge University Library/Babies & Books Exhibition Throughout European history the Virgin Mary has been the model for motherhood. This 15th century French manuscript depicts the baby Jesus suckling at the Virgin’s teat Photograph: Syndics of Cambridge University Library/Babies & Books Exhibition A 13th century manuscript entitled Bestiarium deliberates over whether weasels conceive or give birth through their ear Photograph: Syndics of Cambridge University Library/Babies & Books Exhibition