Zapol Portrait Unveiled

A portrait of Emeritus Anesthetist-in-Chief Dr. Warren M. Zapol was unveiled at a ceremony and reception Oct. 30, 2009, in the East Garden Room at Mass General.

The portrait features Dr. Zapol in front of an Antarctic glacier. Dr. Zapol, a commissioner at the US Arctic Research Commission, is well-known for his anesthesiology research on seals in the Antarctic, and a glacier there has been named after him.

However, this isn't the first time the artists, Warren and Lucia Prosperi, have painted Dr. Zapol: The Prosperis also created the Ether Dome painting depicting the first demonstration of anesthesia at Mass General. In that painting, Dr. Zapol was the model for Dr. W. T. G. Morton, the Boston dentist who administered ether vapors to the patient in 1846.

At the reception, several colleagues of Dr. Zapol reflected on his work and celebrated his contributions to Mass General. Speakers included Drs. Peter Slavin, David Torchiana, Richard J. Kitz, Edward Lowenstein, Robert Schneider, and Jeanine Wiener-Kronish.

"He is truly representative of a physician-scientist at the highest level of performance at this institution," Dr. Slavin said.

Dr. Zapol thanked his colleagues, friends and family for their support.

"Of all the extraordinary things that happen in one's life, I think this one is right up there," Dr. Zapol said.

Pictured: Dr. Warren Zapol (right) with painters Warren and Lucia Prosperi.

Related Links

Dr. Warren Zapol faculty profile

Brown named to Zapol professorship

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