Andreas Vesalius of Brussels 1514 - 1664

The life of Vesalius, the foremost pioneer of modern anatomy, has never before been told in full. the present definitive biography, published in 1964 to mark the four-hundredth ear since Vesalius's death, fills a serious gap in medical history. It is, in fact, the first biography of the great anatomist since Moritz Roth's work of 1892. Much new information has come to light in the intervening seventy years which enables O'Malley to reassess Vesalius in relation to his eminent contemporaries and to re-evaluate his contributions to anatomy and to medical science in general.   O'Malley gives a detailed account of Vesalius's studies of anatomy in Paris, Padua, Pisa, and Bologna, and is thus able to show the comparative advancement of medical knowledge throughout Europe during the sixteenth century. In addition, the book contains a wealth of historical material of broad interest, including an account of the attempt of Vesalius and Ambroise Pare to save the life of Henry II of France as he lay dying form a lance wound in the eye. Also included is a critical account of the various stories concerning Vesalius's persecution by the Inquisition and his subsequent pilgrimage to Jerusalem.   As much as possible of Vesalius's major achievement, De humani corporis fabrica (1543), his epochal treatise on the structure of the human body, is presented in his own words, translated from the Latin text by Dr. O'Malley. Wherever feasible, in fact, an effort has been made by the author to tell the story through the precise words of Vesalius or those of his contemporaries.

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