Vesalius
Does he deserve his
reputation as one of the
most important figures in
the history of anatomy?
• We need to look at the situation
before and after as well as what
Vesalius did during his life.
• In other words how ‘B.A.D’ he was
Well before his time
• Doctors in Ancient Greece treated the human
body as sacred and honoured it by refraining
from cutting up dead bodies.
• Hippocrates and Galen were anatomically weak.
• In medieval times the educated physicians of
Islamic East and Christian West practised
medicine on the basis of the teaching of the
Ancient Greeks.
• Student physicians did not have to attend
dissections as they do today.
• Instead they were expected to learn from the
teachings of Galen ( 129-216AD).
• For 1000 years after Galen’s death almost no
original anatomical enquiries were performed.
Just before Vesalius
• From 1200 some dissections were carried out but not
many - surgeons had to rely on the corpses of executed
criminals.
• The church was against dissection.
• With no fridges to preserve the bodies, dissections could
be performed only during the icy winter months.
• Physicians dressed in long robes, the Professor would
sit in a high chair reading out relevant passages from
works of Galen, while an assistant pointed to the organs
alluded to and a dissector did the knifework.
• By the late Middle Ages, there was general
dissatisfaction with this situation.
Then came the Renaissance
• Church opposition to dissection slowly melted
away in late medieval times.
• During the Black Death, the papacy sanctioned
post-mortems.
• It was not until 1537 that Pope Clement VII
finally accepted the teaching of anatomy by
dissection.
• Leonardo da Vinci produced 750 anatomical
drawings, but they were not necessarily used for
medicine.
Then came
A new kid on the block
Andreas
VESALIUS
REAL BREAKTHROUGH?
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Andreas Vesalius
Born 1514, son of Brussels pharmacist
Studied in France and Italy
As a student he stole the body of an
executed criminal taking it home to study!!
• Became professor at Padua at the age of
just 23
• He worked out an agreement with a judge at
the criminal court in Padua to schedule
executions in accordance with his need for
bodies.
• Vesalius pioneered the use of visual aids
for teaching anatomy. In 1538 he
published a set of six elaborate charts
basically following Galenic anatomy which
became very popular.
• Later he became court physician to
Emperor Charles V and Philip II of Spain
• Vesalius was one of the first doctors to perform
and take records of human dissections. He
published some of the earliest illustrated books
on human anatomy which greatly increased the
understanding of how the human body works.
• In 1543 wrote the Fabric of the Human Body, 7
volumes presenting exact descriptions and
illustrations of the skeleton, muscles, nervous
system, blood vessels.
It was a really important
book
But can you work out why?
Look carefully at what is
happening.
Talk to your partner for a
minute and see what ideas you
come up with
Let’s take it step by step.
This is an illustration
from the front page of the
book
© The British Library Board.
All Rights Reserved
(shelfmark 780.i.4,5)
What does it show ? Clue 1
• Vesalius conducts a
public anatomy. The
fact that the drawing
appeared at the front
of Vesalius’ book
shows……
The importance he
attached to doctors
carrying out dissection
for themselves
Deciphering
the image: clue 2
• The robed men
represent …………
Galen and other Greek
figures
Deciphering
the image: clue 3
Vesalius is on
the same level
as these men .
This tells us
that…..
He is no
longer looking
up at them
Clue 4
• The dog and the
monkey represent the
animals that…….
Galen used
for anatomy
Clue 5
• The unemployed demonstrators are
shown… quarrelling under the table.
This tells us
that…
They are not
needed.
Vesalius did
the dissection
himself, rather
than sitting in
a chair
demonstrating
Clue 6
• The spectators stood
on wooden stands
This tells us…
• Of the Fabric of the Human Body was
frequently reprinted and became a
standard anatomical text. The illustrations
were particularly influential and cheap
reproductions that students could cut out
and paste were produced for medical
education. Vesalius is also considered a
founder of the excellence of Italian
universities in anatomy in the sixteenth
and seventeenth centuries.
• Although it contained no earthshaking
innovations, Of the Fabric of the Human
Body provided a description of the body
unprecedented in its detail.
Really that different?
It was the first anatomy book to present
the body in logical order, from the skeleton
outward, as opposed to medieval anatomy
texts which presented the parts of the
body in the order which dissectors would
encounter them, from the viscera inward.
The Fabric of the Human Body was
important because..
A. It showed Galen was
wrong and corrected
some of his mistakes
B. It showed the importance
of dissection and direct
observation
C. It made use of drawings
showing parts of
dissected drawings
D. It meant that accurate
copies of his books
spread widely
So what did he do to change
anatomy?
• He praised OBSERVATION
• He challenged Galen, recognising that Galen’s
beliefs rested on knowledge of animals rather
than humans.
• He was able to correct 200 previously
unquestioned theories e.g. lower jaw comprises
one bone, not 2 as Galen thought.
• He criticised other doctors for mentioning things
read from Galen’s books but which they had
never seen. You’ve got to get under the skin not
the covers of books!
Specifically
• He presented exact descriptions and illustrations
of skeleton, muscles, nervous system, blood
vessels etc
• Work of Vesalius lent impetus to explorations of
the organs of the body, but he had a better grasp
of structure than function.
His greatest contribution? AFTER
• Created a new atmosphere of enquiry
• Set anatomical study on firm foundations of
observed fact
• No new discoveries, but after him appeals to
Ancient authority lost validity
• Successors compelled to stress precision and
personal first-hand observation
• Others like Pare followed his ideas
British Library website
“Most importantly, Vesalius repeatedly
stressed the idea that students must not
depend upon the teachings of their elders,
but must explore the inner workings of the
human body for themselves”.
www.bi.uk/learning/artimages/bodies/vesalius/renaissance.html