This terracotta model, commissioned by Giuseppe Galletti, shows the retention of placental tissue, one of the most common causes of hemorrhage in the placental stage. This may require a manual extraction of the placenta. We can see the operator's right hand inserted in the uterine cavity detaching the placenta from its site of implantation, while the left hand holds the umbilical cord. Before the introduction of antiseptic measures and the discovery of sulfonamides and antibiotics, the procedure entailed a high mortality.