Anatomy

During the Renaissance the structure of the human body was of compelling interest to intellectuals, artists and practising doctors. They overcame the weight of Galenic tradition and the hostility of the Church and popular opinion to dissection. Under the protection of the Venetian Republic anatomy flourished in Padua, culminating in the publication of Vesalius' Fabrica (in Flanders, well out of reach of the Inquisition).

Public dissections in purpose-built "theatres" were attended by the fashionable intelligentsia as well as medical professionals. The production of anatomical atlases illustrated with fine woodcuts and later with copper and steel engravings continued for more than three centuries. Some of the most celebrated are included in this exhibition.

Comparative anatomy developed during the eighteenth century and laid the foundation for evolutionary theory, while interest in human anatomy shifted from the normal to the abnormal giving rise to pathology as a discipline.