 Hugh Chamberlen the elder, grandnephew of Peter the eldest, tried to sell the instrument in Paris in 1670, but the demonstration he performed in front of François Mauriceau, responsible for Paris Hotel-Dieu maternity, was a failure which resulted in the death of mother and child.The secret may have been sold by Hugh Chamberlen to Dutch obstetricians at the start of the 18th century in Amsterdam, but there are doubts about the authenticity of what was actually provided to buyers.The forceps were used most notably in difficult childbirths.