This terracotta model and item XVIII.61 illustrate total placenta previa, which occurs when the placenta develops in the lowest region of the uterus to the point where it covers the cervix, placing itself in front of the presentation. The fetus is in vertex presentation and labor has entered the dilation stage. Dilation causes the placenta to be extensively separated and denuded. The absolute indication here is Cesarean section. The condition, now diagnosed by ultrasound, causes spontaneous hemorrhaging at the term of pregnancy. Before the introduction of sonograms in the late 1960s, the diagnosis was determined from hemorrhaging at the start of the dilation stage. Before Cesarean section became possible, several techniques were used to complete the delivery, including: vaginal tamponage with gauze, breech rotation so that the lower part of the trunk (podex) of the fetus would compress the bleeding surface of the placenta, and tamponage by means of a rubber balloon. This teaching model was commissioned by Giuseppe Galletti.