Comment by Joseph Yarrow on January 4, 2010 at 16:48
Before 1900 bloodletting was thought to be beneficial for any number of ailments. A fleam such as this would have been used on animals. It would have been placed over a vein and hit with a fleam stick, causing the desired blood flow with minimal pain.
Fleams are very collectable, this one was made by Joseph Rodgers & Sons circa 1880
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