InsideHistoryDigital

Last Supper and The Mona Lisa may be what he
The
remembered for most today, but Da Vinci also
is
that not only could anatomical drawings be
showed
to the advancement of medical
beneficial
process was taken even further by Andreas
The
who would have been unaware of Da Vinci's
Vesalius
was about to challenge the very ideals that
Vesalius
gone unchallenged for nearly 1300 years. The
had
world and anatomy, in particular, was still in
medical
grip of Galen's ideas. In 1543, Vesalius would turn
the
medical world upside down by not only
the
the work of Galen but producing a work
disproving
showed people the human form in ways that
that
had never seen before.
they
Humani Corporis Fabrica (On the Fabric of the
De
Body) was, like many anatomical books, a
Human
effort. Unlike Leonardo Da Vinci,
collaborative
talents did not lay in the world of art but in
Vesalius
art of dissection. Artists would be hired to
the
striking images. The final product would
produce
of more 600 pages of text and beautifully
consist
plates. The plates transcended to work of
detailed
Vinci. Here, the artists involved gave the
Da
work more artistic meaning.
anatomical
of the most iconic illustrations within the
One
is that of a skeleton leaning on a plinth
Fabrica
examining a skull. The skeleton itself is
whilst
structured anatomically, yet this image
perfectly
further. Here, the Fabrica itself is wonderfully
goes
up. The Skeleton, that appears to be a part
summed
the learning process, is also assessing our own
of
mortality.
on the plinth itself is a message that
Engraved
from Latin as: "Everything else is mortal
transcribes
genius lives on." It would suggest that even the
but
involved in this masterpiece of anatomical
artists
acknowledged just how important the work of
work
was.
Vesalius
many believe it to be the work of Jan Van
were,
a Flemish artist who worked with the Titan
Calcar,
collaboration between artist and anatomist
The
the world the gruesome beauty of the
showed
body. It would go on to inspire the work of
human
Harvey and open the door for many artists to
William
anatomical art began to flourish, so to did the
Whilst
of other artists who did not venture down that
work
avenue. The surgeon's guild of Amsterdam
particular
go on to commission a young artist
would
discovery 400 years later.
knowledge, but also be considered works of art in
their own right.
In 1543, Vesalius would turn
the medical world upside
down by not only disproving
the work of Galen but
producing a work that
showed people the human
form in ways that they had
never seen before.
anatomical masterpieces.
Whilst we do not know for sure who the exact artists
Vesalius, De humani corporis fabrica, 1543. Credit: Wellcome Collection. CC BY
studio.
explore even further.
who would later go on to be considered a master.