De Humani Corporis Fabrica

De Humani Corporis Fabrica

Anatomy

This folio explores the idea of anatomy as connected to discovery. These fantastic drawings depict a skeleton in not only extraordinary detail, but a unique vision of anatomy in particularly life-like form. In the drawings above, the skeletons are sketched in particularly “human” poses, such as head in hands or head propped up by one hand. In this choice, the artist conveys a particularly transcendent view of the human form, rather than a scientific one. This folio is said to describe all facets of anatomy, but with a particular emphasis on the shape of eyes and heads, and how those relate to skin color. Andreas Vesalius himself was a pioneer of human body research and with use of the printing press, circulated his drawings and disproved many theorists before him. Born in Brussels in the early 16th century, Vesalius soon became the forefront of anatomical research and many of his theories are proven today. Primarily, he worked to disprove an earlier scientist – Galen. Vesalius realized that most of Galen’s conclusions were based on research of animal bodies rather than human. Vesalius also disproved many of Galen’s theories documenting the superiority of male skeletons, such as the common belief men had one less rib than women, or more teeth. In fact, images of the book shown above revolutionized the way scientists and the general public thought about bodies throughout the 16th and 17th centuries. Since questions of human form are emphasized in Othello, this text provides a unique insight into the knowledge Shakespeare used in his writing. In Vesalius, readers can discover new understandings of the interaction between science and common belief. Though he does not specifically speak to the idea of race, his argument seems to encompass the validity of all sectors of humanity. By disproving widely held belief that male skeletons were somehow superior, Vesalius forces a reconsideration of the human form and supplies an argument that we are more similar than we think.

Andreas Vesalius

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1543

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Used in permission from the Rose Library, Emory University.

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Still image

Latin

Anatomy

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