VESALI (Andre) - Lot 933

Lot 933
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Result : 4 900EUR
VESALI (Andre) - Lot 933
VESALI (Andre) Andreae Vesalii Anatomia. Venice, de Francisci, [1604]. 7 books in one volume in folio: 3f. (including engraved title by Francisco Valegio), 510pp. 33f. (the last 20 pages consist of an appendix: "Universa antiquorum anatome tam ossium, quam partium & externarum, et internarum ex Rufo Ephesio medico antiquissimo: Tribus tabellis expliquent par Fabium Paulinum... "); illustrated with numerous figures in the text and full-page by Joannes Criegher, after woodcuts by Vesalius. Minor paper restorations at the edges of some leaves. Old honey-coloured vellum, handwritten title on spine, small restorations, endpapers renewed. Fifth edition whose typography closely follows that of the fourth edition, published in 1568 by the Venetian printer Francesco Senense, father of the Franceschi brothers. André Vesalius (1514-1564) was an anatomist and physician from Brabant, considered by many historians of science to be the greatest anatomist of the Renaissance, if not the greatest in the history of medicine. His work, in addition to bringing anatomy into the modern age, put an end to the dogmas of Galenism that had been blocking scientific evolution for over a thousand years. He was also a great humanist of his time. In 1543, after four years of incessant work, he published De humani corporis fabrica (The Structure of the Human Body), one of the most innovative books on human anatomy. This monumental work on human anatomy, in seven books, nearly 700 pages, is profusely illustrated; the anatomical plates on wood are attributed to Jan van Calcar or to the school of Titian; the engraver is not known. This work emphasizes the importance of dissection and what is called an "anatomical" view of the body - seeing the interior of the body as a collection of organs grouped by systems. This book is in stark contrast to many of the anatomical models previously used. Although Vesalius' work was not the first to be based on autopsy findings, nor even the first anatomical work of its time, the value of his production of highly detailed and intricate plates, and the fact that the artists who produced them probably witnessed the dissections, make it a classic work. Vesalius describes perfectly the cardiac valves, the diaphragm, the adductors, the sternum, and the interventricular septum. It should be noted, however, that Vesalius' anatomy is essentially descriptive and therefore of little use to surgeons.
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