[The following case was reported by Dr. Azariah Shipman, a surgeon from Syracuse in New York, in 1849. Here, a man had presented to the doctor for treatment in which his penis, swollen and discolored, was stuck inside the neck of a glass bottle. The man was so desperate to have it removed that he ignored all questions as to how this happened until after he was treated. The doctor hit the bottle with the handle of a knife in such a way that the entire thing shattered, freeing the man’s penis.**]
Now for the explanation. A bottle in which some potassium had been kept in naphtha [a flammable liquid hydrocarbon], and which had been used up in experiments, was standing in his room; and wishing to urinate without leaving his room, he pulled out the glass stopper and applied his penis to its mouth. The first jet of urine was followed by an explosive sound and flash of fire, and quick as thought the penis was drawn into the bottle with a force and tenacity which held it as firmly as if in a vice. The burning of the potassium created a vacuum instantaneously, and the soft yielding tissue of the penis effectually excluding the air, the bottle acted like a huge cupping glass to this novel portion of the system. The small size of the mouth of the bottle compressed the veins, while the arteries continued to pour their blood into the glans, prepuce, etc. From this cause, and the rarefied air in the bottle, the parts swelled and puffed up to an enormous size.
[…]
How much potassium was in the bottle at the time is not known, but it is probable that a few grains were left, and those broken off from some of the larger globules, and so small as to have escaped the man’s observation. I was anxious to test the matter (though not with the same instruments which the patient had done)…
[…]
…and for that purpose took a few small particles of potassium, mixed with a teaspoonful of naphtha, and placed them in a pint bottle. Then I introduced some urine with a dash, while the end of one of my fingers was inserted into the mouth of the bottle, but not so tightly as to completely close it, and the result was a loud explosion like a percussion cap, and the finger was drawn forcibly into the bottle and held there strongly – thus verifying, in some degree, this highly interesting philosophical experiment, which so frightened my friend and patient.
This sounds entirely plausible. In case you haven’t seen what happens when a stream of urine hits a piece of potassium, it is every bit as dramatic as Dr. Shipman describes. The metal is highly reactive and even a small fragment will explode violently when thrown into water. It also oxidizes rapidly in air, which is why the young chemistry enthusiast kept his samples in naphtha.
Source:
Morris, Thomas. “Unfortunate Predicaments.” The Mystery of the Exploding Teeth: and Other Curiosities from the History of Medicine. Dutton, An Imprint of Penguin Random House LLC, 2018. 40-1. Print.
Original Source Listed:
A. B. Shipman, “Novel effects of potassium – foreign bodies in the urethra – catalepsy,” Boston Medical and Surgical Journal 41, no. 2 (1849), 33-37.
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This just might be my favorite one yet.