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Human Anatomy: Depicting the Body from the Renaissance to Today
Praised by "Nature" ("stunning"), the "London Times" ("remarkable"), and the "Guardian" ("mesmeric"), this lavishly illustrated book chronicles the remarkable history of anatomical illustration. Before the invention of photography, artists played an essential role in medical science, recording human anatomy in startlingly direct and often moving images. Over 400 years, beginning with Vesalius, they charted the main systems of the body, made precise studies of living organs, documented embryonic development, and described pathologies. "Human Anatomy" includes portfolios of the work of 19 great anatomical artists, with concise biographies, and culminates with the Visible Human Project, which uses digital tools to visualize the human body.
344 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2006
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
January 2, 2012
The shear volume of names and dates in the text of this book is overwhelming, but the collection of historical imagery is outstanding and the author does a tremendous job of building context for those works of art and science illustration.
Highly recommended if you're even marginally interested in human anatomy or art history.
Highly recommended if you're even marginally interested in human anatomy or art history.
January 24, 2018
I recommend that anyone interested in reading this book should take a minute to flip through a physical or digital copy. That was all it took to hook me in - the pictures are beautiful.
I approached this book while taking my first anatomy class alongside a human-figure drawing course. When I began to read the introduction, which is pretty extensive (67 pages), I was amazed that I could scarcely read one paragraph without coming upon a word or thought that I needed serious time to dissect, think about, and look into. It's a great read that weaves bits of medical history, philosophy/religion, and art together into a thoughtful narrative, though I would recommend others do what I did not: skim it (the introduction), and come back to it once you've read the short biographies and the chapter on digital representations of anatomy. It'll save you time, and you'll be able to keep a greater grasp on the overarching themes rather than lose track of them amidst all the interesting details and specifics that are easy to get carried away with.
The pictures are beautiful and take up most of the book after the introduction, with biographies often being just a page or two long. Being a very visual person, this book was a memorable treat that I would recommend to anyone with at least a basic understanding of anatomy; the pictures are more interesting when you can make sense of some of the structures being shown.
I approached this book while taking my first anatomy class alongside a human-figure drawing course. When I began to read the introduction, which is pretty extensive (67 pages), I was amazed that I could scarcely read one paragraph without coming upon a word or thought that I needed serious time to dissect, think about, and look into. It's a great read that weaves bits of medical history, philosophy/religion, and art together into a thoughtful narrative, though I would recommend others do what I did not: skim it (the introduction), and come back to it once you've read the short biographies and the chapter on digital representations of anatomy. It'll save you time, and you'll be able to keep a greater grasp on the overarching themes rather than lose track of them amidst all the interesting details and specifics that are easy to get carried away with.
The pictures are beautiful and take up most of the book after the introduction, with biographies often being just a page or two long. Being a very visual person, this book was a memorable treat that I would recommend to anyone with at least a basic understanding of anatomy; the pictures are more interesting when you can make sense of some of the structures being shown.
February 6, 2013
Medical students press through the aromatics of boiled linen, disinfectant, and formaldehyde, making the rounds of formal lectures, half-draped patients, and stripped cadavers. They study the body to improve its fate.
Art students, half-nourished by a miasma of primed linen, turpentine, and chalk, study the undraped model in life class, practice the diagrams of geometric perspective, and memorize the skeleton and muscles in anatomy.
"With kindred presumptions of benefice," concludes the author, "the doctor studies the body to improve its fate; the artist to improve its spirit."
§ § §
This is no ordinary medical or "art" book. It is a history of the illustrations of "deep" --- and sometimes not-so-deep --- dissections. It contains upwards of three hundred pictures --- mostly woodcuts and engravings --- that were published from the end of the 15th century to the beginning of the 21st.
The design of the book is delicious, if one can use that word with so many illustrations of the "Children of Saturn." The prose is intelligent, wise and penetrating. Likewise, most of the drawings and engravings are clear and rich with detail, often showing a strange sense of modesty. There are twenty-eight important artists featured --- mostly names we have not encountered before: Charles Estienne, Juan Valverdi de Amusco, Bartolommeo Eustachi (you have two of his tubes inserted in your head to protect your ear-drums), William Cheselden (a bone man), William Hunter ... and the improbably named William Smellie. This last created some powerful engravings of fetuses in and sometimes almost out of the uterus --- some of the most disturbing images in the book.
Other interesting monikers include William Skelton who didn't do skeletons but, instead, some fairly ghastly diseased livers, hearts in myocardia, and gangrene; Govard Bidloo, who specialized in neat thoracic cavities, weird fetal skeletons, and shaved heads --- shaved of their outer skin, that is --- including two vile eyes-closed mouth-wide, tongue-extended gack craniums; and Jean-Baptiste Marc Bourgery, whose neck-thorax dissections in vivid color will blow your mind if they don't make you swear off cadaver books for the rest of your days.
It's not only the obscure who appear here. Leonardo da Vinci's "Anatomical Notebooks" are crammed with skeletons and parts of bodies and fetuses "in utero" ... albeit only two included here. There is the "crucified nude" by Jacques Gamelin [Fig. 1 above] that recalls, the author suggests, Michelangelo and Raphael. Rifkin even offers the thought that some of the colorful drawings of "deep dissection" by Jacques Fabian Gautier d'Argoty may have influenced Delacroix and van Gogh.
The most engrossing pattern of the various figures consists of positionings: skeletons running, or kneeling in prayer, or viewing the horizon --- "interrupting a gathering," (or in one case, kneeling before an open book); half-disemboweled figures, hand on hips, eyes looking off in the distance; semi-dissected --- or at least skinned --- men with hands upraised, viewing the heavens; and two hearty male figures, nerves and veins exposed, considering their fingers or each other; and many holding open vistas to body cavities so you can view livers, lungs, bowels, and bladders.
One of Bildoo's well-endowed ladies offers a lovely view of her backside (I), upper thighs (X) and lower legs (L) ... all rather salacious, I thought. In this regard, the author notes that some of the drawings of Jan van Rymsdyk were painted (like some of Gustave Courbet's) as "genital portraits," suitable for lascivious books of the times. These were drawings so graphic that one critic complained that, although van Rymsdyk worked from nature, "the artist forgot to represent the feet, legs, thighs, stomach, hip, chest, shoulders, arms, hands, throat, neck and head." This graphic illustration is included here.
§ § §
Benjamin Rifkin's writing is choice, and makes Human Anatomy not only a gold mine of skinned and eviscerated cadavers, but a literary work of some merit as well. This on the sometimes odd positions of the many figures who have been so profoundly filleted:
The remaining figures may be loosely gathered in groups of the decorous, the demonstrative, and the demented. The decorous are reasonably formed, offering their innards with accommodating modesty like chastened relatives of Berengario's figures. And they are exactly that, for the gift of their cadavers is their penance, an intent demonstrated by the shy deference of their gazes, which look away or down but never meet ours...
In his guide to decorum in art, the sixteenth-century theorist Giovanni Paolo Lomazzo cautioned against unseemly agitation, "the errors of such as give quick motions unto dead parts" in portraying the dead who, as melancholy Children of Saturn, ought to appear with "head declining, eyes fixed upon the earth." The averted glance can be read as shame, a step toward atonement.
By contrast, several cadavers show pride in their work. Eyes on heaven mouths open as if breathing, they stand with fist on hip, elbow out, in an assertive posture of a warrior. It is a pose codified at the end of the sixteenth century in a model book by Jean Cousin the Younger, in use in Baroque body language as a gesture whose meanings range from assurance to arrogance. Demonstrated by a skeleton, the pose suggests the sin of excessive pride, but in this demure context it may well signify the corpse's important value to medicine.
See more reviews at www.RalphMag.org
Art students, half-nourished by a miasma of primed linen, turpentine, and chalk, study the undraped model in life class, practice the diagrams of geometric perspective, and memorize the skeleton and muscles in anatomy.
"With kindred presumptions of benefice," concludes the author, "the doctor studies the body to improve its fate; the artist to improve its spirit."
§ § §
This is no ordinary medical or "art" book. It is a history of the illustrations of "deep" --- and sometimes not-so-deep --- dissections. It contains upwards of three hundred pictures --- mostly woodcuts and engravings --- that were published from the end of the 15th century to the beginning of the 21st.
The design of the book is delicious, if one can use that word with so many illustrations of the "Children of Saturn." The prose is intelligent, wise and penetrating. Likewise, most of the drawings and engravings are clear and rich with detail, often showing a strange sense of modesty. There are twenty-eight important artists featured --- mostly names we have not encountered before: Charles Estienne, Juan Valverdi de Amusco, Bartolommeo Eustachi (you have two of his tubes inserted in your head to protect your ear-drums), William Cheselden (a bone man), William Hunter ... and the improbably named William Smellie. This last created some powerful engravings of fetuses in and sometimes almost out of the uterus --- some of the most disturbing images in the book.
Other interesting monikers include William Skelton who didn't do skeletons but, instead, some fairly ghastly diseased livers, hearts in myocardia, and gangrene; Govard Bidloo, who specialized in neat thoracic cavities, weird fetal skeletons, and shaved heads --- shaved of their outer skin, that is --- including two vile eyes-closed mouth-wide, tongue-extended gack craniums; and Jean-Baptiste Marc Bourgery, whose neck-thorax dissections in vivid color will blow your mind if they don't make you swear off cadaver books for the rest of your days.
It's not only the obscure who appear here. Leonardo da Vinci's "Anatomical Notebooks" are crammed with skeletons and parts of bodies and fetuses "in utero" ... albeit only two included here. There is the "crucified nude" by Jacques Gamelin [Fig. 1 above] that recalls, the author suggests, Michelangelo and Raphael. Rifkin even offers the thought that some of the colorful drawings of "deep dissection" by Jacques Fabian Gautier d'Argoty may have influenced Delacroix and van Gogh.
The most engrossing pattern of the various figures consists of positionings: skeletons running, or kneeling in prayer, or viewing the horizon --- "interrupting a gathering," (or in one case, kneeling before an open book); half-disemboweled figures, hand on hips, eyes looking off in the distance; semi-dissected --- or at least skinned --- men with hands upraised, viewing the heavens; and two hearty male figures, nerves and veins exposed, considering their fingers or each other; and many holding open vistas to body cavities so you can view livers, lungs, bowels, and bladders.
One of Bildoo's well-endowed ladies offers a lovely view of her backside (I), upper thighs (X) and lower legs (L) ... all rather salacious, I thought. In this regard, the author notes that some of the drawings of Jan van Rymsdyk were painted (like some of Gustave Courbet's) as "genital portraits," suitable for lascivious books of the times. These were drawings so graphic that one critic complained that, although van Rymsdyk worked from nature, "the artist forgot to represent the feet, legs, thighs, stomach, hip, chest, shoulders, arms, hands, throat, neck and head." This graphic illustration is included here.
§ § §
Benjamin Rifkin's writing is choice, and makes Human Anatomy not only a gold mine of skinned and eviscerated cadavers, but a literary work of some merit as well. This on the sometimes odd positions of the many figures who have been so profoundly filleted:
The remaining figures may be loosely gathered in groups of the decorous, the demonstrative, and the demented. The decorous are reasonably formed, offering their innards with accommodating modesty like chastened relatives of Berengario's figures. And they are exactly that, for the gift of their cadavers is their penance, an intent demonstrated by the shy deference of their gazes, which look away or down but never meet ours...
In his guide to decorum in art, the sixteenth-century theorist Giovanni Paolo Lomazzo cautioned against unseemly agitation, "the errors of such as give quick motions unto dead parts" in portraying the dead who, as melancholy Children of Saturn, ought to appear with "head declining, eyes fixed upon the earth." The averted glance can be read as shame, a step toward atonement.
By contrast, several cadavers show pride in their work. Eyes on heaven mouths open as if breathing, they stand with fist on hip, elbow out, in an assertive posture of a warrior. It is a pose codified at the end of the sixteenth century in a model book by Jean Cousin the Younger, in use in Baroque body language as a gesture whose meanings range from assurance to arrogance. Demonstrated by a skeleton, the pose suggests the sin of excessive pride, but in this demure context it may well signify the corpse's important value to medicine.
See more reviews at www.RalphMag.org
March 9, 2022
Compulsively readable, albeit a tad confusing when it comes to the individual biographies/descriptions. I didn't quite understand who owns which illustration when there are several authors/anatomists discussed, as they are not indicated on the plates/illustrations themselves. My favorite, of course, is Ruysch, though I've made a lot of discoveries here. Pretty up to date, except for the non-mention of plastinated cadavers, though to be fair, these are models and not illustrations. Recommended to anyone who has even a passing interest in anatomy.
April 8, 2021
It certainly was a solid piece of work and it showed me how images of the body changed throughout the ages. On the other hand, I cannot say that I liked this book - the descriptions were rather dull and often it was not convenient to page through the book or search on the internet for the things being described. There was also some confusion regarding chronology.
December 1, 2016
Great read!
Some times we forget the benefits of knowledge have accumulated slowly and with great effort.
This book dissects the who discovered what when!
It is an examination of the art, printing and of the anatomist's revelation.
"Form drives Function."
Anatomy rules, KGA
Some times we forget the benefits of knowledge have accumulated slowly and with great effort.
This book dissects the who discovered what when!
It is an examination of the art, printing and of the anatomist's revelation.
"Form drives Function."
Anatomy rules, KGA
September 4, 2022
Like the hand drawn images much more.
November 29, 2022
The plates were gorgeous and obviously the best part of the book. The writing was dull.
May 19, 2024
Morbid. I would have enjoyed it more if I didn't read the text, which was dull and took away from the images.
November 16, 2012
This book is awesome. I've looked through it before, and it goes without saying that the illustrations are amazing. But this time I decided to actually read all the text, too. It's a good primer on anatomical illustration and describes some of the key historical texts and why they were important. Post-1900 isn't very well represented, and I didn't care for most of the "digital age" imges. I know there has to be better stuff out there, and while the 3D diagrams and the story behind how they were created are pretty cool, the images themselves aren't quite as aesthetically pleasing as the older illustrations and already seem dated (although I did really like the color cryosection images from the Visible Human Project). I definitely recommend reading the introductory text for that section because it is so interesting, even though many of the images are underwhelming. The "digital age" section only takes up about 30 pages of this 330 page book.
Many of the images reproduced in this book are also freely available on the web. There are citations at the end. I highly suggest checking them out if you like what you see in this book.
Many of the images reproduced in this book are also freely available on the web. There are citations at the end. I highly suggest checking them out if you like what you see in this book.
February 11, 2016
A good friend of mine gave me this book to read knowing that I enjoyed Medical History as well as Human Anatomy and Physiology.
This book does an excellent job concentrating on classic renditions of the human body but gives really short shrift to the more modern artists of the Human Body, specifically Frank Netter.
Dr Netter is one of my favorite illustrators and I'm a proud owner of his classic works done for Ciba/Giegy.
If you're interested in the really classical renditions of the human body, this is your book as it is chock full of beautifully rendered illustrations, but if you love the more modern works, look elsewhere.
This book does an excellent job concentrating on classic renditions of the human body but gives really short shrift to the more modern artists of the Human Body, specifically Frank Netter.
Dr Netter is one of my favorite illustrators and I'm a proud owner of his classic works done for Ciba/Giegy.
If you're interested in the really classical renditions of the human body, this is your book as it is chock full of beautifully rendered illustrations, but if you love the more modern works, look elsewhere.
June 8, 2016
A brilliant look into the history of anatomical art. It's easy to ready and easy to get into. You don't need to be an art historian, an anatomist, a surgeon or an artist to understand each of the easily digestible chapters. I never realized how steeped in politics, religion and philosophy medical drawings could be. It's a fantastic insight into how artists and medical practitioners acquired their vast knowledge and it's a great way to marvel at skill of centuries of devoted artists and craftsmen. Also, the human body is super cool and it's just so amazing to learn how it's all put together.
April 7, 2008
the text is of debatable interest (a bit dry to the bone, only for those truly enthused), but these illustrations are, ahem, 'to die for.' the early & odd understandings (or misunderstandings) of human anatomy yields a fertile ground for the creative imagination interested in: death, horror, the grotesque, & human anatomy & its 'subjectives' representations. i'll write with more examples one i have the time... some illustrations are truly DEVASTATING...
March 12, 2014
An excellent way to be introduced to the major changes and advancements in anatomical drawing from Vesalius onwards. It's absolutely packed with pictures and has plenty of information for the reader too. The only fault was that some of the biographies of individuals mirrored the main text a bit too much, but generally they did add to main text as well, so it was certainly forgivable. All in all, a very good book.
August 18, 2007
Oh, swoooon! I haven't even read the text yet, but the pictures are awesome! The modern stuff doesn't knock my socks off, but this book includes some fantastic and disturbing Renaissance-era anatomical illustrations, crazy drawings of partially dissected people pulling their own skin back for the viewer's convenience, stuff like that.
May 3, 2012
Absolutely beautiful. Some of the best life drawings I have ever found. Anatomically correct, but also beyond creative and even grotesque. The fetus drawings being some of my favorite. Textually, I agree with some of the reviews who say the interest level is 'debatable', depends on what you are interested in. However, the book is worth the drawings alone.
September 21, 2016
Antik çağlardan, Vesalius'a, Da Vinci'ye, Metter'e ve günümüz bilgisayar çağına kadar anatomik çizimlerin, medikal illüstrasyonunun tarihçesini anlatan güzel bir akademik kaynak kitap. Lisans tezimi yazarken sıklıkla kullanmıştım.
Ayrıca Robinson Crusoe 389'dan aldığım ilk kitaptı; anısı da var :(
Ayrıca Robinson Crusoe 389'dan aldığım ilk kitaptı; anısı da var :(
January 29, 2013
It was really interesting to see how medical illustrations have changed over history. How there was a connection between science, art and religion. How the early illustration had the dead morning their death or cadavers that help by peeling their own skin - a holy pentace for humanity.
July 26, 2007
It's a good cursory read about the history of western anatomical rendering since the early renaissance to the present.
lots of good pictures that will make you squirm.
lots of good pictures that will make you squirm.
October 31, 2008
this is an intense look at the very inside of you. Every page that is turned I am in constant awe. Beautiful and gothic.
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March 12, 2010Not for the squeamish. Brilliant illustrated history of how surgeons and artists have tried to depict anatomy since the renaissance. Fascinating stuff, and lots of pictures.
September 8, 2012
The beauty and weirdness of the human body, through medieval eyes.
March 30, 2013
This is a very interesting book, is very eye caching because of the paintings and grotesque pictures of anatomy it contains. The context is mostly tedious.
September 2, 2014
Very interesting from a historical standpoint. Not a very fun read, but I enjoyed learning about the history of what we know of the human body.
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews