Structure of the Human Body

Vesalius, the father of modern anatomy
Andreas Vesalius (1514-1564), the father of modern anatomy who first dissected the human body.
There is no record of human dissection for over 1,300 years, from the mid-2nd century AD, when Roman law prohibited human dissection, until the Middle Ages.
Galen's anatomy textbook, which was the foundation of Western medicine, was based on dissected animals such as monkeys and pigs, and was different from the actual human structure.
But no one challenged Galen's authority, and no one actually attempted to dissect a human being.
During this period, Vesalius founded a school of anatomy in Italy.
He actually dissected the human body and proved that Galen's anatomy was wrong, and at the same time completely changed the perception of the human body.

Vesalius also studied Galen's anatomy and was an ardent supporter of Galen's purposive physiology, but his admirable qualities include his systematic criticism of the anatomical errors in Galen's textbooks and his attitude of correcting the errors through discussions with many contemporary anatomists, including his teacher Sylvius.
In this sense, Vesalius is called the 'father of modern anatomy.'

Dissect people, lecture on them, and leave drawings
The quickest way to acquire accurate knowledge about the human body is to dissect a corpse yourself.
Human anatomy, which we take for granted now, was not taken for granted in the past either.
At the time, the professor broke the convention of not performing dissections and taught directly, dissecting human corpses instead of using an assistant.
This is because I thought that the structure of a human being should be learned directly from the textbook called ‘the human body’ rather than from Galen’s textbook.
Thanks to anatomists studying and teaching the human body by dissecting it directly, the structure of the human body, which we now take for granted, has been accurately revealed.

Publication of Fabrica: On the Structure of the Human Body, the Birth of Modern Anatomy
Vesalius's anatomy was possible because he possessed a scientific approach that sought to verify the facts by directly dissecting corpses rather than blindly following the existing academic traditions or the achievements of his predecessors, in keeping with the Renaissance trend of the time; an original and creative teaching method that attempted to simultaneously lecture while dissecting and use drawings as teaching aids; and an artistic sensibility that could accurately and beautifully express the results of the dissection.
In 1538, Vesalius published six of his drawings as Tabulae Anatomicae Sex, which attracted the attention of the public.
He also collected the drawings he had made while dissecting and published them in 1543 as De Humani Corporis Fabrica Libri Septum (abbreviated as Fabrica) and De Humani Corporis Librorum Epitome.
《Fabrica》 is a famous work consisting of seven volumes and has provided great stimulation not only to anatomy but also to medicine in general, producing many excellent medical doctors.

The Vesalius Anatomy is a beautiful result of the creative fusion of science and art.
I hope that this will be an opportunity to abandon the idea of ​​simply studying the structure of the human body and learn about Vesalius's perspective on what he thought while dissecting people and how he felt about humans and nature.

Vesalius, humanist and artist
If you look closely at the figures appearing in Vesalius's anatomical diagrams, you get the sense that they are not simply the result of observations made by natural scientists or anatomists who were simply interested in the human body by dissecting corpses, but rather humans who are part of nature, living humans who have transcended death.
In this respect, Vesalius could be said to be a physician, anatomist, scientist, humanist, and artist who valued humans, life, and living beings.