Andreas Vesalius: De Humani Corporis Fabrica

Andreas Vesalius: De Humani Corporis Fabrica – Pytheas Books – 548.i.2.(1) – British Library (London, United Kingdom)

Basel (Switzerland) β€” 1555

A cornerstone of modern medicine, created by one of its most famous representatives: 250 detailed woodcuts as impressive evidence of early anatomical knowledge

  1. A cornerstone of medical science by the father of modern Anatomy, Andreas Vesalius (1514–1564)

  2. The 250 woodcuts were created by artists who personally witnessed autopsies

  3. Both an abridged version and several β€œpirate editions” of this popular work were published

Andreas Vesalius: De Humani Corporis Fabrica

Facsimile Copy Available!
Price Category: €€
(1,000€ - 3,000€)
  1. Description
  2. Detail Picture
  3. Single Page
  4. Facsimile Editions (2)
Description
Andreas Vesalius: De Humani Corporis Fabrica

In the mid-16th century, the dissection of human cadavers was considered to be an absolute taboo and was sometimes harshly penalized. Medicinal and anatomical findings were gained from the exploration of animal cadavers. This was not enough for the ambitious medical student Andreas Vesalius. He obtained corpses in adventurous cloak-and-dagger operations from graveyards and used them to conduct his studies, which make up the cornerstone of modern anatomy. Vesalius recorded his findings in his anatomical atlas De humani corporis fabrica. This medical treatise is one of the most important works on human anatomy to have ever been written and is illustrated with masterful woodcuts.

Andreas Vesalius: De Humani Corporis Fabrica

Though Vesalius’ work was not the first such work based on actual autopsy, nor even the first work of this era, the quality of its production – highly detailed and intricate plates – and the likelihood that the artists who produced it were present at the dissections themselves made it into an instant classic. Vesalius had the work published at the age of 28, taking great pains to ensure its quality. The more than 250 illustrations are of great artistic merit and are generally attributed by modern scholars to the β€œstudio of Titian”. This splendidly illustrated codex represents a cornerstone of modern medicine.

Woodcuts of the Highest Quality

These woodcuts were greatly superior to the illustrations in anatomical atlases of the day, which were never made by anatomy professors themselves. The woodcut blocks were transported to Basel, Switzerland as Vesalius wished that the work be published by one of the foremost printers of the time, Johannes Oporinus. Vesalius’ written directions to Oporinus (the printer) were so valuable the printer decided to include them. The illustrations were engraved on wooden blocks, which allowed for very fine artistic value. The book contains discussions and illustrations of the structure, function and pathology of the human body. The different parts are named in Latin, Greek and Hebrew. The author notes the opinions of other authorities as well as expressing his own. He also includes tales of his experiences in grave-robbing and dissection. The illustrations portray the human body in progressive stages of dissection, set before a landscape and posed according to the taste of the day for the sculpture of Classical antiquity. In one plate, for example, a skeleton rests its elbow on a tomb with its skull bent in contemplation of mortality – though perhaps a little too late! Soon after publication, many pirate copies appeared and brought Europe-wide fame to Vesalius.

About the Author

Andreas Vesalius (1514–1564) was probably the most famous anatomist of the late Renaissance. He relied on the experiences of his own dissections and provided a description of the human body with a previously unprecedented level of detail, an uncommon practice for his time. He was born in Brussels on either the last day of 1514 or on the first day of 1515. He came from a family of physicians, which must be the reason for his devotion to surgery and anatomy. At age 15 he left Brussels to study in Louvain, later studied medicine at Montpellier and Paris before returning to Louvain again, but this time not as a student but to teach anatomy. Later he lectured at the prestigious university of Padua, and was a guest lecturer at the University of Bologna. He was only 28 years old when he published his great works, the De Humani Corporis Fabrica libri septum and Epitome, the latter being the summarized version of the original, a cheaper and shorter version made specifically for his students to use. The collection of books are based on his Paduan lectures, during which he deviated from common practice by dissecting a corpse to illustrate what he was discussing. Dissections previously had been performed by a barber surgeon under the direction of a doctor of medicine, who was expected not to perform β€œmanual labor”. Vesalius’ β€œhands-on” magnum opus presents a careful examination of the organs and the complete structure of the human body. It is for this reason that Vesalius is often considered to be the father of modern anatomy.

Creating the Codex

None of this would not have been possible without the many advances that had been made during the Renaissance, including both artistic developments with regard to literal visual representation and the technical development of printing refined woodcut engravings. Because of these developments and his careful, immediate involvement, he was able to produce illustrations superior to any that had been produced up to then. He commissioned the former Titian apprentice Jan van Kalkar to create the artistic and scientific illustrations of the book. After the book was published, Vesalius sent Emperor Charles V a beautiful copy bound in imperial purple silk and printed on parchment. When the Emperor received it, he called Vesalius to his court, and asked Vesalius to work as an imperial surgeon. Consequently, Vesalius turned down Cosimo de Medici, who offered him a place as a professor at the University of Padua. Over the next eleven years, Vesalius traveled with the court, treating injuries from battle or tournaments, performing postmortems, administering medications, and writing private letters addressing specific medical questions. After the abdication of Emperor Charles V, he continued at court in great favor with his son, Philip II, who rewarded him with a pension for life by making him a Count Palatine. In 1555, he published a revised edition of De humani corporis fabrica. In 1564, Vesalius went on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. When he arrived in Jerusalem, he received a message from the Venetian senate requesting him again to accept the Paduan professorship, which had become vacant by the death of his friend and pupil Fallopius. After struggling for many days with the adverse winds, he was wrecked on the island of Zakynthos. He was buried somewhere in the island of Korfu in 1564.

Codicology

Size / Format
890 pages / 38.5 Γ— 25.0 cm
Date
1555
Illustrations
More than 250 woodcut illustrations
Content
The anatomy of the human body is presented in both text and illustrations
Artist / School

Available facsimile editions:
Andreas Vesalius: De Humani Corporis Fabrica – Pytheas Books – 548.i.2.(1) – British Library (London, United Kingdom)
Pytheas Books – Budapest, 2004

Andreas Vesalius: De Humani Corporis Fabrica – Pytheas Books – 548.i.2.(1) – British Library (London, United Kingdom)
Pytheas Books – Budapest, 2020
Detail Picture

Andreas Vesalius: De Humani Corporis Fabrica

Title Page – Classroom Autopsy of a Human Cadaver

As the author looks out at the reader and points to the open abdomen of the cadaver, a mob of student is crowding about the table while others (flanking Death) watch from the gallery above. A textbook, possibly the treatise at hand, can be seen held in the hands of a young and clean-shaven medical student, whose colleagues gather around him on the left. Another is clutched to the breast of a man with deep-set eyes observing the autopsy with another old, bearded doctor on the right.

Andreas Vesalius: De Humani Corporis Fabrica – Pytheas Books – 548.i.2.(1) – British Library (London, United Kingdom)
Single Page

Andreas Vesalius: De Humani Corporis Fabrica

Title Page – Classroom Autopsy of a Human Cadaver

Dissecting the human body has long been controversial. Before being banned by Christian theologians, Western restrictions on β€œviolating” a human body date back to Greek and Roman antiquity. Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II (1194–1250) was the first to require medical students to attend human dissections and autopsies were common in European universities by the time of Renaissance.

Andreas Vesalius, the author of this text, is pictured to the left of the corpse with his right hand resting lightly on its exposed abdomen. He is in the center of the detailed woodcut depicting a crowded operating theater full of people jockeying for a view of the autopsy. The specter of death in the form of a scythe-wielding skeleton stands at the head of the dissection table.

Andreas Vesalius: De Humani Corporis Fabrica – Pytheas Books – 548.i.2.(1) – British Library (London, United Kingdom)
Facsimile Editions

#1 Andreas Vesalius: De Humani Corporis Fabrica

Pytheas Books – Budapest, 2004

Publisher: Pytheas Books – Budapest, 2004
Binding: The cover is made from wood and it is bound in leather with copper decoration on the corners and in the middle of the book case. The book closes with 4 copper clasps. Black leather label with guilded letters and guilded decoration on the spine. Opening and closing the book one can admire the beautiful mottled end paper. The pages are sewed manually on ribs.
1 volume: Exact reproduction of the original document (extent, color and size) Reproduction of the entire original document as detailed as possible (scope, format, colors). The binding may not correspond to the original or current document binding.
Facsimile Copy Available!
Price Category: €€
(1,000€ - 3,000€)

#2 Andreas Vesalius: De Humani Corporis Fabrica

Pytheas Books – Budapest, 2020

Publisher: Pytheas Books – Budapest, 2020
Binding: Dark brown leather binding with bling tooling and 4 clasps.
1 volume: Exact reproduction of the original document (extent, color and size) Reproduction of the entire original document as detailed as possible (scope, format, colors). The binding may not correspond to the original or current document binding.
Facsimile Copy Available!
Price Category: €€
(1,000€ - 3,000€)
You might also be interested in:
Codex Atlanticus – Giunti Editore – Biblioteca Ambrosiana (Milan, Italy)
Codex Atlanticus
Italy – 1478–1518

A unique mammoth work of twelve large-format volumes with more than 1,000 sheets: the largest coherent collection of sketches and writings by the genius of the century, Leonardo da Vinci

Experience More
Corpus of the Anatomical Studies – Giunti Editore – Royal Library at Windsor Castle (Windsor, United Kingdom)
Corpus of the Anatomical Studies
Italy – 1483–1513

With studies for the famous Virgin of the Rocks and the legendary Last Supper: Leonardo's discovery of human anatomy on 400 fascinating pages from the Royal Library in Windsor Castle

Experience More
De Humani Corporis Fabrica - Andreas Vesalius – Orbis Pictus – Biblioteka Uniwersytecka MikoΕ‚aj Kopernik w Toruniu (ToruΕ„, Poland)
De Humani Corporis Fabrica - Andreas Vesalius
Basel (Switzerland) – 1555

Surely the most famous work by Andreas Vesalius and a milestone in the history of medicine: his groundbreaking treatise and 30 masterful woodcuts on human anatomy, based on empirical methods

Experience More
Anatomia depicta – Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana - Treccani – Nuove Accessioni 329 (Grandi Formati 64) – Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale di Firenze (Florence, Italy)
Anatomy Depicted
Italy – 1565–1589

Large format and in color: a fascinating insight into the medicine of the 16th century with 71 realistic anatomical representations of the human body

Experience More
Viage de la Catholica Real Magestad del Rei D. Filipe III N.S. al Reino de Portugal… – Vicent Garcia Editores – R/6055 – Biblioteca Nacional de EspaΓ±a (Madrid, Spain)
Viage de la Catholica Real Magestad del Rei D. Filipe III N.S. al Reino de Portugal…
Madrid (Spain) – 1622

The king and his heir to the throne visit their realm: detailed engravings with geographical and historical information on the impressing grand tour of Philip II and his son through Spain and Portugal

Experience More
Andreas Vesalius: De Humani Corporis Fabrica and Epitome – Maruzen-Yushodo Co. Ltd. – I/115 – InternationalΒ ResearchΒ CenterΒ for Japanese Studies Library (Kyoto, Japan)
Andreas Vesalius: De Humani Corporis Fabrica and Epitome
Basel (Switzerland) – 1543

Foundation stones of modern anatomy: two documents with 250 detailed woodcuts demonstrating Andreas Vesalius' unwavering spirit of research when battling the narrow-minded limitations of his time

Experience More
Blog articles worth reading
Filter selection
Publisher