The Illustrations from the Works of Andreas Vesalius of Brussels (Dover Fine Art, History of Art)

I have nothing particularly new to add to the other reviews. I use this in my teaching and my students love it. It is really an excellent work and quite a good edition. If you are intereted in the uropean scientific revolution (or teach it) this text is a nice primary source on the subject.

This book is one that every single medical student or history enthusiast must own. It gives particularly accurate insight on the life and work of one of the most brilliant and important medical geniuses of the "rebirth". With unsurpassed detail and beautiful arrangement, anatomy has not been represented in such an incredible and accurate way, given the context and the times in which Andreas Vesalius developed his research (dissection was outlawed and Galenus' theories on anatomy, which were based on animal anatomy, were considered dogma) and the extremely poor conditions and knowledge of the human body up until that point in time. Like all great scientists and researchers, Vesalius' recognition came after his death, but it is still a great way to honor him to get to know a little about his life and work, which this book does in such a fine way. The quality of the paper in which it was printed lets the reader get the whole picture and because of it's oppasity you can enjoy all the details as if you were looking at the original work. The price is also quite a bargain, which, needless to say, is a fair trait in itself. As a personal note, when I first read and saw some of the paintings within Vesalius' "De Humani Corporis Fabrica", that was the moment when I realized my destiny was in the medical profession; and years later I can see it was not a bad choice at all.

I first heard about Andreas Vesalius when I read about his work in BODY OF KNOWLEDGE. His drawings have been the basis for THE ATLAS OF HUMAN ANATOMY and GRANT'S DISSECTOR and other reference books used in Anatomy classes at medical schools throughout the country.What makes his work incredible is to think the fascinating illustrations of the human anatomy were researched and drawn by Vesalius in 1543. His book has been called "one of the most noble and magnificent volumes in the history of printing" and "one of the greatest treasures of Western Civilization". More incredible is the manner in which he performed the dissections and the relative accuracy of the drawings which have survived to this day. The introduction gives an absorbing and enlightening account of Vesalius' life in the first half of the 16th century. The book is for the curious and those interested in anatomy, art, graphic arts and printing. You will read and look in awe and wonder about the history and progress of medicine and science.

Andreus Vesalius, whom I speculate was a student of Da Vinci, shows the body in all sorts of poses, while in each page you see the body "drips" off its skin and muscles all the way down to the bones. Some masterful work and imagination employed here! Just marvelous! Taken from his monumental work De Humani Corporis Fabrica, which is still used today in the medical fields. Also included are plates from his Epitome of the De Humani Corporis Fabrica and Tabulae Sex. Essentially this is only the illustrations, but it also includes a lengthy introduction as well as excerps from the original text. Highly reccomended to the art student and medical student for this indispensible reference. Also a great book just to appreciate some amazing art. Some of my favorite plates are of the nervous sytem in which it is a full body posed standing upright. I imagine how Andreas created this, and also realized how well he must have known the body's anatomy in order to attempt such a feat. Awesome!