Operating room of the Montreal General Hospital, c.1910

Operating theatres were central to medical education, serving as both spaces of practice and observation. Within these rooms, students and trainees learned surgical techniques firsthand, guided by experienced physicians. Before the advent of film and digital imaging, live demonstrations were among the few ways to document anatomy in motion. The design of these spaces, with tiered seating and bright lighting, reflected their dual purpose as sites of learning and precision. Beyond their clinical function, operating theatres embodied the transmission of medical knowledge from one generation to the next.