Editing Frederik Ruysch (section)

==Life==
Frederik Ruysch was born in [[The Hague]] as the son of a government functionary and started as the pupil of a druggist. Fascinated by anatomy, he studied at the university of [[Leiden]], under [[Franciscus Sylvius]]. His fellow students were [[Jan Swammerdam]], [[Reinier de Graaf]] and [[Niels Stensen]]. The dissection of corpses was relatively expensive and [[cadavers]] were scarce, which led Ruysch to find alternative ways to prepare the organs. In 1661, he married Maria Post, daughter of the Dutch architect,
[[Pieter Post]]. He graduated in 1664 with a thesis on [[pleuritis]].<ref>Dohmen, J. (1982) Wetenschappelijke erediensten voor publiek. De anatomische lessen van Frederik Ruysch. In: 1632- 1982. 350 Jaar wetenschap in Amsterdam. Folia Civitatis, 9 januari 1982, nr. 19. p. 19.</ref>

Ruysch became ''praelector'' of the [[Amsterdam]] [[surgery|surgeon]]'s [[guild]] in 1667. In 1668, he was made the chief instructor to the city's [[Midwifery|midwives]]. They were no longer allowed to practice their profession until they had been examined by Ruysch. In 1679, he was appointed as a forensic advisor to the Amsterdam courts and in 1685 as a professor of [[botany]] in the [[Hortus Botanicus Amsterdam]], where he worked with [[Jan Commelin|Jan]] and [[Caspar Commelin]]. Ruysch specialized in indigenous plants.