Editing History of anatomy

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[[File:Dissection of a Cadaver.jpg|thumb|300px|Dissection of a cadaver, 15th-century painting]]

The '''history of anatomy''' spans from the earliest examinations of [[sacrifice|sacrificial]] victims to the advanced studies of the human body conducted by modern scientists. Written descriptions of human organs and parts can be traced back thousands of years to ancient [[Ancient Egyptian anatomical studies|Egyptian papyri]], where attention to the body was necessitated by their highly elaborate [[Ancient Egyptian funerary practices|burial practices]].

Theoretical considerations of the structure and function of the human body did not develop until far later, in [[ancient Greece]]. Ancient Greek philosophers, like [[Alcmaeon of Croton|Alcmaeon]] and [[Empedocles]], and ancient Greek doctors, like [[Hippocrates]] and [[Hippocratic Corpus|his school]], paid attention to the causes of life, disease, and different functions of the body. [[Aristotle]] advocated [[dissection]] of animals as part of his program for understanding the [[Four causes|causes]] of biological [[Aristotle's theory of universals|forms]]. During the [[Hellenistic period|Hellenistic Age]], dissection and [[vivisection]] of human beings took place for the first time in the work of [[Herophilos]] and [[Erasistratus]]. Anatomical knowledge in antiquity would reach its apex in the person of [[Galen]], who made important discoveries through his medical practice and his dissections of [[Barbary ape|monkeys]], [[ox]]en, and other animals.

Anatomical study continued to build on Galen's work throughout the Middle Ages, where his teachings formed the foundation of a medical education.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Lindemann|first1=Mary|title=Medicine and Society in Early Modern Europe|date=2010|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|location=Cambridge, United Kingdom|page=91|edition=2nd}}</ref> The [[Renaissance]] (or [[Black Death]]) brought a reconsideration of classical medical texts, and anatomical dissections became once again fashionable for the first time since Galen. Important anatomical work was carried out by [[Mondino de Luzzi]], [[Jacopo Berengario da Carpi|Berengario da Carpi]], and [[Jacques Dubois]], culminating in [[Andreas Vesalius]]'s seminal work ''[[De Humani Corporis Fabrica Libri Septem|De Humani Corporis Fabrica]]'' (1543). An understanding of the [[Human skeleton|structures]] and [[Physiology|functions]] of [[organ (anatomy)|organ]]s in the body has been an integral part of [[Medicine|medical practice]] and a source for [[Biomedicine|scientific investigations]] ever since.

==Ancient anatomy==
===Egypt===
{{Main| Ancient Egyptian anatomical studies}}
{{see also|Cardiocentric hypothesis}}
[[File:Hieroglyphic-brain.png|thumb|[[Hieroglyph]] designating the brain or skull in the [[Edwin Smith Papyrus|Edwin Smith papyrus]].]]
The study of [[anatomy]] begins at least as early as [[1600 BC]], the date of the [[Edwin Smith Surgical Papyrus]]. This treatise shows that the [[heart]], its vessels, [[liver]], [[spleen]], [[kidneys]], [[hypothalamus]], [[uterus]], and [[Urinary bladder|bladder]] were recognized,{{citation needed|date=January 2022}} and that the [[blood vessel]]s were known to emanate from the heart. Other vessels are described; some carrying air, some [[mucus]], and two to the right [[ear]] are said to carry the "breath of life",{{clarify|date=August 2014}} while two to the left ear, the "breath of death".{{citation needed|date=August 2014}}The [[Ebers Papyrus]] (c. 1550 BC) features a treatise on the heart. It notes that the heart is the center of blood supply, and attached to it are vessels for every member of the body. The Egyptians seem to have known little about the function of the kidneys and the brain, and made the heart the meeting point of a number of vessels which carried all the fluids of the body—[[blood]], [[tears]], [[urine]], and [[semen]]. However, they did not have a theory as to where [[saliva]] and sweat came from.<ref name="Porter1999">{{cite book|last=Porter|first=Roy|title=The Greatest Benefit to Mankind: A Medical History of Humanity (The Norton History of Science)|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=igGdz9g7tmAC|access-date=17 November 2013|date=1999-10-17|publisher=W. W. Norton|isbn=9780393319804|pages=49–50}}</ref>

===Ancient Greece===
Much of the nomenclature, methods, and applications for the study of anatomy can be traced back to the works of the ancient Greeks.<ref>{{cite book|last=Singer|first=Charles|title=A Short History of Anatomy & Physiology from Greeks to Harvey|year=1957|publisher=[[Dover Publications|Dover Publications Inc.]]|location=NEw York|page=5}}</ref> In the fifth-century BCE, the philosopher [[Alcmaeon of Croton|Alcmaeon]] may have been one of the first to have dissected animals for anatomical purposes, and possibly identified the optic nerves and [[Eustachian tube]]s.<ref>{{cite book|last=Singer|first=Charles|title=A Short History of Anatomy & Physiology from Greeks to Harvey|year=1957|publisher=Dover Publications Inc.|location=NEw York|page=7}}</ref> Ancient physicians such as [[Acron]], [[Pausanias of Sicily|Pausanias]], and [[Philistion of Locri]] may had also conducted anatomical investigations. Another important philosopher at the time was [[Empedocles]], who viewed blood as the ''innate heat'' and argued that the heart was the chief organ of the body and the source of ''[[pneuma]]'' (this could refer to either breath or soul), which was distributed by the blood vessels.<ref>{{cite book|last=Singer|first=Charles|title=A Short History of Anatomy & Physiology from Greeks to Harvey|year=1957|publisher=Dover Publications Inc.|location=NEw York|page=10}}</ref>

Many medical texts by various authors are collected in the ''[[Hippocratic Corpus]]'', none of which can definitely be ascribed to [[Hippocrates]] himself. The texts show an understanding of [[musculoskeletal]] structure, and the beginnings of understanding of the function of certain organs, such as the kidneys. The Hippocratic work, ''On the Heart'', for example, contributed a great deal of knowledge to the field of anatomy, even as many of its assumptions regarding physiology were incorrect.<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last1=Roberts |first1=Wallisa |last2=Salandy |first2=Sonja |last3=Mandal |first3=Gaurav |last4=Holda |first4=M. K. |last5=Tomaszewksi |first5=K. A. |last6=Gielecki |first6=Jerzy |last7=Tubbs |first7=R. Shane |last8=Loukas |first8=Marios |date=2019-11-01 |title=Across the centuries: Piecing together the anatomy of the heart |journal=Translational Research in Anatomy |volume=17 |pages=100051 |doi=10.1016/j.tria.2019.100051 |issn=2214-854X|doi-access=free }}</ref>

The philosopher [[Aristotle]] (4th century BCE), alongside some of his contemporaries, labored to produce a system that made room for empirical research. Through his work with animal [[dissection]]s and [[biology]], Aristotle engaged in [[comparative anatomy]]. Around this time, [[Praxagoras]] may have been the first to identify the difference between [[artery|arteries]] and [[vein]]s, though some specifics of the distinction he offered—such as his hypothesis that arteries carry air while veins carry blood—were incorrect.<ref name=":2" />

In the [[Hellenistic period]], the first recorded school of anatomy was formed in [[Alexandria]] from the late fourth century to the second century BCE.<ref name="Siddiquey 2009">{{cite journal|last=Siddiquey|first=Ak Shamsuddin Husain|title=History of Anatomy|journal=Bangladesh Journal of Anatomy|year=2009|volume=7 | issue = 1|pages=1–3|doi=10.3329/bja.v7i1.3008|doi-access=free}}</ref> Beginning with [[Ptolemy I Soter]], medical officials were allowed to cut open and examine [[cadaver]]s for the purposes of learning how human bodies operated. The first use of human bodies for anatomical research occurred in the work of [[Herophilos]] and [[Erasistratus]], who gained permission to perform live dissections, or [[vivisection]], on condemned criminals in Alexandria under the auspices of the [[Ptolemaic dynasty]]. Herophilos in particular developed a body of anatomical knowledge much more informed by the actual structure of the human body than previous works had been. He also reversed the longstanding notion made by Aristotle that the heart was the "seat of intelligence", arguing for the brain instead.<ref>{{cite book|last=Singer|first=Charles|title=A Short History of Anatomy & Physiology from Greeks to Harvey|year=1957|publisher=Dover Publications Inc.|location=NEw York|page=29}}</ref> He also wrote on the distinction between veins and arteries, and made many other accurate observations about the structure of the human body, especially the nervous system.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Bay|first1=Noel Si-Yang|last2=Bay|first2=Boon-Huat|date=December 2010|title=Greek anatomist herophilus: the father of anatomy|journal=Anatomy & Cell Biology|volume=43|issue=4|pages=280–283|doi=10.5115/acb.2010.43.4.280|issn=2093-3665|pmc=3026179|pmid=21267401}}</ref>

===Galen===
[[File:Galen finding skeleton. Wellcome L0013635.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|Galen examining a [[human skeleton]].]]
The final major anatomist of ancient times was [[Galen]], active in the second century CE.<ref name="Siddiquey 2009"/> He was born in the ancient Greek city of [[Pergamon]] (now in Turkey) as the son of a successful architect, who gave him a liberal education. Galen was instructed in all major philosophical schools (Platonism, Aristotelianism, Stoicism, and Epicureanism) until his father, moved by a dream of [[Asclepius]], decided he should study medicine. After his father's death, Galen searched abroad for the best doctors in [[Smyrna]], [[Corinth]], and finally [[Alexandria]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Nutton|first=V.|date=2002|title=Logic, Learning, and Experimental Medicine|journal=Science|volume=295|issue=5556|pages=800–801|language=EN|doi=10.1126/science.1066244|pmid=11823624|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Hankinson|first=R. J.|title=Partitioning the Soul|chapter-url=https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783110311884.85/html|chapter=Partitioning the Soul: Galen on the Anatomy of the Psychic Functions and Mental Illness|publisher=De Gruyter|year=2014|pages=85–106|language=en|doi=10.1515/9783110311884.85|isbn=9783110311884|access-date=2021-09-05|archive-date=2021-09-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210905205621/https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783110311884.85/html|url-status=live}}</ref>

Galen compiled much of the knowledge obtained by his predecessors, and furthered the inquiry into the function of organs by performing [[dissection]]s and [[vivisection]]s on [[Barbary macaque|Barbary apes]], [[ox]]en, [[pig]]s, and other animals. Due to a lack of readily available human specimens, discoveries through animal dissection were broadly applied to human anatomy as well. In 158 CE, Galen served as chief physician to the gladiators in his native [[Pergamum|Pergamon]]. Through his position, Galen was able to study all kinds of wounds without performing any actual human dissection, and was able to view much of the abdominal cavity. His study on pigs and apes, however, gave him more detailed information about the organs, and provided the basis for his medical works. Around 100 of these works survive today —the most for any ancient Greek author—and comprise 22 volumes of modern text.

Anatomy was a prominent part of Galen's medical education and was a major source of interest throughout his life. He wrote two great anatomical works, ''On anatomical procedure'' and ''On the uses of the parts of the body of man''.<ref>{{cite book|last=Singer|first=Charles|title=A Short History of Anatomy & Physiology from Greeks to Harvey|year=1957|publisher=Dover Publications Inc.|location=NEw York|page=47}}</ref> The information in these tracts became the foundation of authority for all medical writers and physicians for the next 1300 years, until they were challenged by [[Vesalius]] and [[William Harvey|Harvey]] in the 16th century.<ref>{{cite book | title=The Scientific Renaissance 1450-1630 | publisher=Fontana | author=Boas, Marie | year=1970 | pages=120, 248|quote="Vesalius, finding Galen's teachings full of errors, was quite certain that he had been able to disprove them."}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | title=The Scientific Renaissance 1450-1630 | publisher=Fontana | author=Boas, Marie | year=1970 | page=262|quote="Like any sixteenth-century anatomist, [Harvey] too began working off of Galen's teachings, and managed to interpret Galen's words in such a way to win support for his new doctrine."}}</ref>

It was through his experiments that Galen was able to overturn many long-held beliefs, such as the theory that the arteries contained air, which it carried from the heart and lungs to all parts of the body. This belief was based originally on the arteries of dead animals, which had appeared empty. Galen was able to demonstrate that living arteries contain blood, but his error, which became the established medical orthodoxy for centuries, was to assume that the blood goes back and forth from the heart in an ebb-and-flow motion.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Pasipoularides|first=Ares|date=March 1, 2014|title=Galen, father of systematic medicine. An essay on the evolution of modern medicine and cardiology|journal=International Journal of Cardiology|volume=172|issue=1|pages=47–58|doi=10.1016/j.ijcard.2013.12.166|pmid=24461486}}</ref> Galen also made the mistake of assuming that the circulatory system was entirely open-ended.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Aird|first=W. C.|date=2011|title=Discovery of the cardiovascular system: from Galen to William Harvey|journal=Journal of Thrombosis and Haemostasis|language=en|volume=9|issue=s1|pages=118–129|doi=10.1111/j.1538-7836.2011.04312.x|pmid=21781247|s2cid=12092592|issn=1538-7836|doi-access=free}}</ref> Galen believed that all blood was absorbed by the body and had to be regenerated via the liver using food and water.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last=Neder|first=J. Alberto|date=2020-06-01|title=Cardiovascular and pulmonary interactions: why Galen's misconceptions proved clinically useful for 1,300 years|journal=Advances in Physiology Education|volume=44|issue=2|pages=225–231|doi=10.1152/advan.00058.2020|pmid=32412380|s2cid=218648041|issn=1043-4046|doi-access=free}}</ref> Galen viewed the cardiovascular system as a machine in which blood acts as fuel rather than a system that constantly recirculates.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Fleming|first=Donald|date=1955|title=Galen on the Motions of the Blood in the Heart and Lungs|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/226820|journal=Isis|volume=46|issue=1|pages=14–21|doi=10.1086/348379|jstor=226820|pmid=14353581|s2cid=29583656|issn=0021-1753|access-date=2021-12-07|archive-date=2021-12-02|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211202175711/https://www.jstor.org/stable/226820|url-status=live|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

Although Galen correctly identified some of the organs involved in the vascular system, many of their functions were not properly identified. Galen believed that the liver, for example, played a vital role in the circulatory system by creating all nutritious blood in the body. The heart, according to him, kept the body warm and mixed the two types of blood via pores in the wall that separates the left and right ventricles.<ref name=":1" /> Galen also proposed that the heart's warmth was what allowed the lungs to expand and inhale air.<ref name=":1" /> In contrast, Galen viewed the lungs as a cooling region in the body that also worked to expel sooty waste products from the body as they contracted. Additionally, Galen believed that the lungs kept the heart functioning properly by reducing the amount of blood in the right atrium—for if the right atrium contained too much blood, the pores in the heart would not dilate properly.<ref name=":1" />

==Medieval to early modern anatomy==
===Abū Bakr al-Rāzī===
'''Abū Bakr al-Rāzī''' (full name: {{langx|ar|أبو بکر محمد بن زکریاء الرازي|translit=Abū Bakr Muḥammad ibn Zakariyyāʾ al-Rāzī|label=none}}),{{efn|For the spelling of his [[Arabic]] name, see for example {{harvnb|Kraus|1939}}. Sometimes it is also spelled {{langx|ar|زکریا|label=none}} ({{transliteration|ar|Zakariyyā}}) rather than {{langx|ar|زکریاء|label=none}} ({{transliteration|ar|Zakariyyāʾ}}), as for example in {{harvnb|Dānish-pazhūh|1964|loc=p. 1 of the edition}}, or in {{harvnb|Mohaghegh|1993|p=5}}. In modern [[Persian language|Persian]] his name is rendered as {{langx|fa|ابوبکر محمدبن زکریا رازی|label=none}} (see {{harvnb|Dānish-pazhūh|1964|loc=p. 1 of the introduction}}), though instead of {{langx|fa|زکریا|label=none}} one may also find {{langx|fa|زکریای|label=none}} (see {{harvnb|Mohaghegh|1993|p=18}}).}} {{circa|864 or 865–925 or 935 CE}},{{efn|For his date of birth, {{harvnb|Kraus|Pines|1913–1936}} give 864 CE / 250 AH ({{harvnb|Goodman|1960–2007}} gives 854 CE / 250 AH, but this is a typo), while {{harvnb|Richter-Bernburg|2003}} and {{harvnb|Adamson|2021a}} give 865 CE / 251 AH. For his date of death as 925 or 935 CE / 313 or 323 AH, see Goodman 1960–2007; some sources only give 925 CE / 313 AH ({{harvnb|Walker|1998}}; Richter-Bernburg 2003; {{harvnb|Adamson|2021a}}).}} often known as '''(al-)Razi''' or by his [[Latinization (literature)|Latin]] name '''Rhazes''', also rendered '''Rhasis''', was a Persian [[Medicine in the medieval Islamic world|physician]], [[Islamic philosophy|philosopher]] and [[Alchemy and chemistry in medieval Islam|alchemist]] who lived during the [[Islamic Golden Age]]. He is widely regarded as one of the most important figures in the history of medicine,<ref>{{harvnb|Walker|1998}}; {{harvnb|Iskandar|2008}}; {{harvnb|Adamson|2021a}}.</ref> and also wrote on [[logic]], [[astronomy]] and [[grammar]].<ref>Majid  Fakhry, ''A  History  of  Islamic  Philosophy: Third  Edition'', Columbia University Press (2004), p. 98.</ref> In his book ''Doubts about Galen'',<ref>Edited and translated into French by {{harvnb|Koetschet|2019}}. An older edition is {{harvnb|Mohaghegh|1993}}.</ref> al-Razi rejects several claims made by the Greek physician, as far as the alleged superiority of the [[Greek language]] and many of his [[cosmology|cosmological]] and medical views. 

;''Book for al-Mansur ({{lang|ar|Kitāb al-Manṣūrī}})''
Al-Razi dedicated this work to his patron [[Abu Salih Mansur|Abū Ṣāliḥ al-Manṣūr]], the [[Samanid]] governor of Ray.<ref>{{harvnb|Adamson|2021b|p=17}}.</ref> It was translated into Latin by [[Gerard of Cremona]] around 1180.<ref>{{cite web |title=Rāzī, Liber Almansoris (Cambridge, University Library, MS Add. 9213) |url=https://cudl.lib.cam.ac.uk/view/MS-ADD-09213/1 |website=Cambridge Digital Library |access-date=22 November 2023}}</ref> A Latin translation of it was edited in the 16th century by the Dutch anatomist and physician [[Andreas Vesalius]].<ref name="auto">{{harvnb|Adamson|2021a}}.</ref>

The anatomy part in Kitab Al-Ma'nsuri has 26 sections, being divided into sections about structures, such as bones, nerves, muscles, veins, and arteries, and organs such as the eyes, nose, heart, and intestines. He followed Galen in many of his anatomical descriptions, but also opposed—and improved—Galen's descriptions in many others. For example, he was the first to describe the recurrent laryngeal nerve as a mixed sensory and motor nerve, precisely described the circle of Willis, and distinguished nerves from tendons. He opposed Galen's concept that the brain, spinal cord, and ventricles comprise a single structure. He also corrected Galen by arguing that the stomach has three (not two) layers and the coccyx includes three (not five) bones (three—or four—is the number commonly given in current textbooks), and the correct relationship between the ureters and the urinary bladder. These examples of more accurate descriptions by Al-Razi could be a result of detailed observation of surgeries or, perhaps more likely, of human dissections, taking into account their level of detail and also the fact that he publicly stressed the importance of dissections in the medical field.<ref>Alghamdi MA, Ziermann JM, Diogo R. An untold story: The important contributions of Muslim scholars for the understanding of human anatomy. The Anatomical Record. 2017 Jun;300(6):986-1008.</ref>

===Ibn al-Nafis===
'''ʿAlāʾ al-Dīn Abū al-Ḥasan ʿAlī ibn Abī Ḥazm al-Qarashī'''  ([[Arabic]]: علاء الدين أبو الحسن عليّ بن أبي حزم القرشي ), known as '''Ibn al-Nafīs''' ([[Arabic]]: ابن النفيس), was an [[Arab]] [[polymath]] whose areas of work included [[medicine]], [[surgery]], [[physiology]], [[anatomy]], [[biology]], [[Islamic studies]], [[jurisprudence]], and [[philosophy]]. He is known for being the first to describe the [[pulmonary circulation]] of the [[blood]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Majeed|first1=Azeem|date=2005|title=How Islam changed medicine|journal=BMJ|volume=331|issue=7531|pages=1486–1487|doi=10.1136/bmj.331.7531.1486|pmid=16373721|pmc=1322233}}</ref> The work of Ibn al-Nafis regarding the right sided (pulmonary) circulation pre-dates the later work (1628) of [[William Harvey]]'s ''[[De motu cordis]]''. Both theories attempt to explain circulation. 2nd century Greek physician [[Galen]]'s theory about the physiology of the [[circulatory]] system remained unchallenged until the works of Ibn al-Nafis, for which he has been described as ''"the father of circulatory physiology"''.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Feucht|first1=Cynthia|last2=Greydanus|first2=Donald E.|last3=Merrick|first3=Joav|last4=Patel|first4=Dilip R.|last5=Omar|first5=Hatim A.|title=Pharmacotherapeutics in Medical Disorders|date=2012|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|isbn=978-3-11-027636-7|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ODwkBgAAQBAJ&q=%22father+of+circulatory+physiology%22&pg=PA2|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Moore|first1=Lisa Jean|last2=Casper|first2=Monica J.|title=The Body: Social and Cultural Dissections|date=2014|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-136-77172-9|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BRIhBQAAQBAJ&q=%22father+of+circulatory+physiology%22&pg=PA124|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=deVries|first1=Catherine R.|last2=Price|first2=Raymond R.|title=Global Surgery and Public Health: A New Paradigm|date=2012|publisher=Jones & Bartlett Publishers|isbn=978-0-7637-8048-7|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8CbVNdBxmdIC&q=%22father+of+the+theory+of+circulation%22&pg=PA39|language=en}}</ref>

As an early anatomist, Ibn al-Nafis also performed several human [[dissection]]s during the course of his work,<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Patrice Le Floch-Prigent and Dominique Delaval|title=The discovery of the pulmonary circulation by Ibn al Nafis during the 13th century: an anatomical approach|journal=[[The FASEB Journal]] |date=April 2014|volume=28|url=http://www.fasebj.org/content/28/1_Supplement/543.9.short}}</ref> making several important discoveries in the fields of [[physiology]] and [[anatomy]]. Besides his famous discovery of the [[pulmonary circulation]], he also gave an early insight of the [[coronary circulation|coronary]] and [[Microcirculation|capillary circulations]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Szasz|first1=Theodora|last2=Tostes|first2=Rita C. A.|title=Vascular Smooth Muscle Function in Hypertension|date=2016|publisher=Biota Publishing|isbn=978-1-61504-685-0|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XjZgDQAAQBAJ&q=coronary+Ibn+al-Nafis&pg=PA3|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Mantzavinos|first1=C.|title=Explanatory Pluralism|date=2016|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1-107-12851-4|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vXQZDAAAQBAJ&q=capillary+Ibn+al-Nafis&pg=PA95|language=en}}</ref>

===Pre-Renaissance Europe===
Throughout the Middle Ages in Europe, human anatomy was mainly learned through books and animal dissection.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Siraisi|first1=Nancey G.|title=Medieval and Early Renaissance Medicine|url=https://archive.org/details/medievalearlyren00sira|url-access=registration|date=1990|publisher=University of Chicago Press|location=Chicago and London|isbn=978-0-226-76129-9|page=[https://archive.org/details/medievalearlyren00sira/page/n98 84]}}</ref> While it was claimed by 19th century polemicists that dissection became restricted after [[Pope Boniface VIII|Boniface VIII]] passed a [[papal bull]] that forbade the dismemberment and boiling of corpses for funerary purposes and this is still repeated in some generalist works, this claim has been debunked as a myth by modern historians of science.<ref>{{cite book |last=Park|first=Katherine|editor-last=Numbers|editor-first=Ronald L.|title=Galileo Goes to Jail and Other Myths about Science and Religion |publisher=Harvard University Press |date=November 2010 |pages=43–49 |chapter= Myth 5 - That the Medieval Church Prohibited Dissection |isbn=9780674057418}}</ref>

For many decades human dissection was thought unnecessary when all the knowledge about a human body could be read about from early authors such as Galen.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Nutton|first1=Vivian|title=Ancient Medicine|url=https://archive.org/details/ancientmedicine00nutt|url-access=registration|date=2004|publisher=Routledge Taylor & Francis Group|location=London and New York|isbn=978-0-415-36848-3|page=[https://archive.org/details/ancientmedicine00nutt/page/n152 138]}}</ref> In the 12th century, as universities were being established in Italy, Emperor Frederick II made it mandatory for students of medicine to take courses on human anatomy and surgery.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Crombie|first1=A.C.|title=Medieval and Early Modern Science|date=1967|publisher=Harvard University Press.|location=Cambridge, Massachusetts|page=180 and 181|edition=volume 1}}</ref> Students who had the opportunity to watch Vesalius in dissection at times had the opportunity to interact with the animal corpse. At the risk of letting their eagerness to participate become a distraction to their professors, medical students preferred this interactive teaching style at the time.<ref name=":02">{{Cite journal|last=Klestinec|first=Cynthia|year=2004|title=A History of Anatomy Theaters in Sixteenth-Century Padua|journal=Journal of the History of Medicine|volume=59|issue=3|pages=376–379|doi=10.1093/jhmas/59.3.375|pmid=15270335}}</ref> In the universities the lectern would sit elevated before the audience and instruct someone else in the dissection of the body, but in his early years Mondino de Luzzi performed the dissection himself making him one of the first and few to use a hands on approach to teaching human anatomy.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Persaud|first1=T.V.N.|last2=Loukas|first2=Marios|last3=Tubbs|first3=Shane R. |title=A History of Human Anatomy|date=2014|publisher=Charles C. Thomas|location=Springfield, Illinois|isbn=978-0-398-08105-8|page=55}}</ref> Specifically in 1315, Mondino de' Liuzzi is credited with having "performed the first human dissection recorded for Western Europe."<ref>{{Cite book|title=Medicine and Society in Early Modern Europe|last=Lindemann|first=Mary|publisher=Cambridge university press|year=2010|isbn=978-0-521-73256-7|pages=92}}</ref>

[[Mondino de Luzzi]] "Mundinus" was born around 1276 and died in 1326; from 1314 to 1324 he presented many lectures on human anatomy at Bologna university.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Gordon|first1=Benjamin Lee|title=Medieval and Renaissance Medicine|date=1959|publisher=Philosophical Library, Inc.|location=New York|pages=422–426}}</ref> Mondino de'Luzzi put together a book called "Anathomia" in 1316 that consisted of detailed dissections that he had performed, this book was used as a text book in universities for 250 years.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Persaud|first1=T.V.N.|last2=Loukas|first2=Marios|last3=Tubbs|first3=Shane R.|title=A History of Human Anatomy|date=2014|publisher=Charles C. Thomas|location=Springfield, Illinois, U.S.A|isbn=978-0-398-08105-8|pages=56, 55–59|edition=Second|url=http://public.eblib.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=1823109|access-date=2015-11-28|archive-date=2017-09-08|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170908213435/https://public.eblib.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=1823109|url-status=live}}</ref> "Mundinus" carried out the first systematic human dissections since [[Herophilus of Chalcedon]] and [[Erasistratus of Ceos]] 1500 years earlier.<ref name="ZimmermanVeith1993">{{cite book|last1=Zimmerman|first1=Leo M.|last2=Veith|first2=Ilza|title=Great Ideas in the History of Surgery|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ABbCI7z4UwMC|access-date=7 December 2012|date=1993-08-01 |publisher=Norman Publishing|isbn=9780930405533}}</ref><ref name="Crombie1959">{{cite book |last=Crombie |first=Alistair Cameron |title=The History of Science From Augustine to Galileo |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bGDScHy1clsC&pg=PA4|access-date=19 December 2012 |year=1959 |publisher=Courier Dover Publications |isbn=9780486288505}}</ref> The first major development in anatomy in Christian Europe since the fall of Rome occurred at [[Bologna]], where anatomists dissected cadavers and contributed to the accurate description of organs and the identification of their functions. Following de Liuzzi's early studies, 15th century anatomists included [[Alessandro Achillini]] and [[Antonio Benivieni]].<ref name="ZimmermanVeith1993" /><ref name="BenivieniPolybus1529">{{cite book |last1=Benivieni |first1=Antonio|last2=Polybus |last3=Guinterius |first3=Joannes |title=De abditis nonnullis ac mirandis morborum & sanationum causis |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ieNEAAAAcAAJ|access-date=7 December 2012 |year=1529 |publisher=apud Andream Cratandrum}}</ref>

===Leonardo da Vinci===
[[File:Leonardo da Vinci - RCIN 919000, Verso The bones and muscles of the arm c.1510-11.jpg|upright=.9|thumb|Anatomical study of the arm, by [[Leonardo da Vinci]], c. 1510]]
[[Leonardo da Vinci]] (1452–1519) was trained in anatomy by [[Andrea del Verrocchio]]. In 1489 Leonardo began a series of anatomical drawings depicting the ideal human form. This work was carried out intermittently for over two decades. During this time he made use of his anatomical knowledge in his artwork, making many sketches of skeletal structures, muscles, and organs of humans and other vertebrates that he dissected.<ref name=Boas>{{cite book | title=The Scientific Renaissance 1450–1630 | publisher=Fontana | author=Boas, Marie | year=1970 | pages=120–143}} (First published by Collins, 1962)</ref><ref>{{cite book | last=Mason | first=Stephen F. | title=A History of the Sciences | url=https://archive.org/details/historyofscience00maso | publisher=Collier | year=1962 | location = New York | page=[https://archive.org/details/historyofscience00maso/page/550 550]}}</ref>

Initially adopting an [[Aristotle]]an understanding of anatomy, he later studied Galen and adopted a more empirical approach, eventually abandoning Galen altogether and relying entirely on his own direct observation.<ref name=Dover>{{cite book | last=O'Malley| first=Charles D. | title=Leonardo on the Human Body | publisher=Dover| year=1983 | location = New York}}</ref> His surviving 750 drawings represent groundbreaking studies in anatomy. Leonardo dissected around thirty human specimens until he was forced to stop under order of [[Pope Leo X]].{{citation needed|reason=The previous reference had no mention on da Vinci or Pope Leo X|date=July 2015}}

As an artist-anatomist, Leonardo made many important discoveries, and had intended to publish a comprehensive treatise on human anatomy.<ref name=Dover /> For instance, he produced the first accurate depiction of the human spine, while his notes documenting his dissection of the Florentine [[centenarian]] contain the earliest known description of [[cirrhosis of the liver]] and [[arteriosclerosis]].<ref name=Dover /><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.lairweb.org.nz/leonardo/anatomy.html | title=Leonardo the Man, His machines | publisher=Lairweb | access-date=2 November 2014 | archive-date=1 November 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141101214213/http://www.lairweb.org.nz/leonardo/anatomy.html | url-status=live }}</ref> He was the first to develop drawing techniques in anatomy to convey information using cross-sections and multiple angles, although centuries would pass before anatomical drawings became accepted as crucial for learning anatomy.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://lifeinthefastlane.com/leonardo-da-vinci-first-anatomist/ | title=Leonardo Da Vinci first Anatomist | publisher=Life in The Fast Lane | access-date=2 November 2014 | date=2009-04-19 | archive-date=2014-11-03 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141103001515/http://lifeinthefastlane.com/leonardo-da-vinci-first-anatomist/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

None of Leonardo's Notebooks were published during his lifetime, many being lost after his death, with the result that his anatomical discoveries remained unknown until they were later found and published centuries after his death.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.ivc.edu/academics/schoolFA/arthistory/Documents/art2526projects/davinci_f07/page/paper.html | title=Leonardo Da Vinci's Notebook Project | publisher=Irvine Valley College | access-date=2 November 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141112202548/http://www.ivc.edu/academics/schoolFA/arthistory/Documents/art2526projects/davinci_f07/page/paper.html | archive-date=12 November 2014 | url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Vesalius===
{{more citations needed section|date=January 2015}}
[[File:Portrait of Andreas Vesalius, half-length in profile standing in front of a table dissecting the arm of a body; frontispiece to Andreas Vesalius 'De humani corporis fabrica libri septem' MET DP853465.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|A portrait of [[Andreas Vesalius]] from ''De Humani Corporis Fabrica'' (1543)]]
The Galenic doctrine in Europe was first seriously challenged in the 16th century. Thanks to the [[printing press]], all over Europe a collective effort proceeded to circulate the works of Galen and later publish criticisms on their works. [[Andreas Vesalius]], born and educated in Belgium, contributed the most to human anatomy. Vesalius's success were due in large part to him exercising the skills of mindful dissections for the sake of understanding anatomy, much to the tune of Galen's "anatomy project" instead of focusing on the work of other scholars of the time in recovering the ancient texts of Hippocrates, Galen and others (which much of the medical community was focused around at the time).<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Klestinec|first=Cynthia|year=2004|title=A History of Anatomy Theaters in Sixteenth-Century Padua|journal=Journal of the History of Medicine|volume=59|issue=3|pages=377|doi=10.1093/jhmas/jrh089|pmid=15270335}}</ref>

Vesalius was the first to publish a treatise, ''[[De Humani Corporis Fabrica Libri Septem|De Humani Corporis Fabrica]]'', that challenged Galen's anatomical teachings, arguing that they are based on observations of other mammals, not human bodies.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.umich.edu/~ece/student_projects/anatomy/people_pages/vesalius.html|title=Andreas Vesalius {{!}} Anatomy in the Age of Enlightenment|website=www.umich.edu|access-date=2017-02-05|archive-date=2016-12-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161214171726/http://www.umich.edu/~ece/student_projects/anatomy/people_pages/vesalius.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The book included a detailed series of explanations and vivid drawings of the anatomical parts of human bodies. Vesalius traveled all the way from [[Leuven]] to [[Padua]] for permission to dissect victims from the [[gallows]] without fear of persecution. His superbly executed drawings are triumphant descriptions of the differences between dogs and humans, but it took a century for Galen's influence to fade.

Vesalius' work marked a new era in the study of anatomy and its relation to medicine. Under Vesalius, anatomy became an actual discipline. "His skill in and attention to dissection featured prominently in his publications as well as his demonstrations, in his research as well as his teaching."<ref>{{cite journal |last=Klestinec |first=Cynthia |title=A History of Anatomy Theaters in Sixteenth-Century Padua |journal=Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences |year=2004 |volume=59 | issue = 3 |pages=375–412 |doi=10.1093/jhmas/59.3.375|pmid=15270335 }}</ref>
In 1540, Vesalius gave a public demonstration of the inaccuracies of Galen's anatomical theories, which are still the orthodoxy of the medical profession. Vesalius now has on display, for comparison purposes, the skeletons of a human being alongside that of an ape of which he was able to show, that in many cases, Galen's observations were indeed correct for the ape, but bear little relation to man. Clearly what was needed was a new account of human anatomy. While the lecturer explained human anatomy, as revealed by Galen more than 1000 years earlier, an assistant pointed to the equivalent details on a dissected corpse. At times, the assistant was unable to find the organ as described, but invariably the corpse rather than Galen was held to be in error. Vesalius then decided that he will dissect corpses himself and trust to the evidence of what he found. His approach was highly controversial, but his evident skill led to his appointment as professor of surgery and anatomy at the University of Padua.

A succession of researchers proceeded to refine the body of anatomical knowledge, giving their names to a number of anatomical structures along the way. The 16th and 17th centuries also witnessed significant advances in the understanding of the [[circulatory system]], as the purpose of [[valve]]s in veins was identified, the left-to-right ventricle flow of blood through the circulatory system was described, and the [[hepatic vein]]s were identified as a separate portion of the circulatory system. The [[lymphatic system]] was also identified as a separate system at this time.

===Anatomical theatres===
<gallery>
File:Woodcut of anatomical dissection. Wellcome M0011499.jpg|A woodcut of an anatomical dissection, from 1493
File:An anatomical dissection being carried out by Andreas Vesali Wellcome V0010413.jpg|An anatomical dissection being carried out by Andreas Vesalius, 1543
Image:Rembrandt - The Anatomy Lesson of Dr Nicolaes Tulp.jpg|''[[The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp]]'', by [[Rembrandt]], 1632
File:Dr_Deijman’s_Anatomy_Lesson_(fragment),_by_Rembrandt.jpg| ''[[The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Deijman]]'' by [[Rembrandt]], 1656
File:Rembrandt van Rijn 193.jpg|Sketch of the Preceding painting ''The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Deijman''
File:A depiction of an anatomical theatre.jpeg|An Anatomical Theatre In Leiden, 1616
Image:cruelty4.JPG|''The reward of cruelty'' (Plate IV) by William Hogarth 1751 
</gallery>
In the late 16th century, anatomists began exploring and pushing for contention that the study of anatomy could contribute to advancing the boundaries of natural philosophy. However, the majority of students were more interested in the practicality of anatomy, and less so in the advancement of knowledge of the subject. Students were interested in the technique of dissection rather than the philosophy of anatomy, and this was reflected in their criticism of Professors such as Girolamo Fabrici.<ref name=":02"/>

[[Anatomical theatre]]s became a popular form for anatomical teaching in the early 16th century. The [[University of Padua]] was the first and most widely known theatre, founded in 1594. As a result, Italy became the centre for human dissection. People came from all over to watch as professors taught lectures on the [[human physiology]] and anatomy, as anyone was welcome to witness the spectacle. Participants "were fascinated by corporeal display, by the body undergoing dissection".<ref name="Klestinec">{{cite journal|last=Klestinec |first=Cynthia |title=A History of Anatomy Theaters in Sixteenth-Century Padua|journal=Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences |year=2004 |volume=59 | issue = 3 |pages=375–412 |doi=10.1093/jhmas/59.3.375|pmid=15270335 }}</ref> Most professors did not do the dissections themselves. Instead, they sat in seats above the bodies while hired hands did the cutting. Students and observers would be placed around the table in a circular, stadium-like arena and listen as professors explained the various anatomical parts. As anatomy theatres gained popularity throughout the 16th century, protocols were adjusted to account for the disruptions of students. Students moved beyond simply being eager to participate, and began stealing and vandalizing cadavers. Students were thus instructed to sit quietly and were to be penalized for disrupting the dissection. Moreover, preparatory lectures were mandatory in order to introduce the "subsequent observation of anatomy". The demonstrations were structured into dissections and lectures. The dissections focused on the skill of autopsy/vivisection while the lectures would center on the philosophical questions of anatomy. This is exemplary of how anatomy was viewed not only as the study of structures but also the study of the "body as an extension of the soul".<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Klestinec|first=Cynthia|year=2004|title=A History of Anatomy Theaters in Sixteenth-Century Padua |journal=Journal of the History of Medicine|volume=59|issue=3|pages=391–392|doi=10.1093/jhmas/59.3.375|pmid=15270335}}</ref> The 19th century eventually saw a move from anatomical theatres to classrooms, reducing "the number of people who could benefit from each cadaver".<ref name="Siddiquey 2009" />

=== 17th century ===
[[File:William Harvey (1578-1657) Venenbild.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|Harvey's anatomical researches from ''De Motu Cordis'' (1628)]]
At the beginning of the 17th century, the use of dissecting human cadavers influenced anatomy, leading to a spike in the study of anatomy. The advent of the printing press facilitated the exchange of ideas. Because the study of anatomy concerned observation and drawings, the popularity of the anatomist was equal to the quality of his drawing talents, and one need not be an expert in Latin to take part.<ref>{{cite web|title=Dream Anatomy: Exhibition Information|url=https://www.nlm.nih.gov/dreamanatomy/da_info.html|publisher=NLM|access-date=2018-03-21|archive-date=2017-09-07|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170907204745/https://www.nlm.nih.gov/dreamanatomy/da_info.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Many famous artists studied anatomy, attended dissections, and published drawings for money, from [[Michelangelo]] to [[Rembrandt]]. For the first time, prominent universities could teach something about anatomy through drawings, rather than relying on knowledge of Latin. Contrary to popular belief, the Church neither objected to nor obstructed anatomical research.<ref>{{cite news|last=Howse|first=Christopher|date=10 June 2009|title=The myth of the anatomy lesson|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=London|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/columnists/christopherhowse/5496340/False-myth-of-the-anatomy-lesson.html|access-date=4 May 2010|archive-date=12 February 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180212192917/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/columnists/christopherhowse/5496340/False-myth-of-the-anatomy-lesson.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

Only certified anatomists were allowed to perform dissections, and sometimes then only yearly. These dissections were sponsored by the city councilors and often charged an admission fee, rather like a circus act for scholars. Many European cities, such as Amsterdam, London, Copenhagen, Padua, and Paris, all had Royal anatomists (or some such office) tied to local government. Indeed, [[Nicolaes Tulp]] was Mayor of Amsterdam for three terms. Though it was a risky business to perform dissections, and unpredictable depending on the availability of fresh bodies, ''attending'' dissections was legal.{{citation needed|date=March 2017}}

The supply of printed anatomy books from Italy and France led to an increased demand for human cadavers for dissections. Since few bodies were voluntarily donated for dissection, royal charters were established which allowed prominent universities to use the bodies of hanged criminals for dissections. However, there was still a shortage of bodies that could not accommodate for the high demand of bodies.

==Modern anatomy==
===18th century===
Until the middle of the 18th century, there was a quota of ten cadavers for each the Royal College of Physicians and the Company of Barber Surgeons, the only two groups permitted to perform dissections. During the first half of the 18th century, William Cheselden challenged the Company of Barber Surgeon's exclusive rights on dissections. He was the first to hold regular anatomy lectures and demonstrations. He also wrote ''The Anatomy of the Humane Body'', a student handbook of anatomy.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Sanders|first=M. A.|date=1999-11-01|title=William Cheselden: anatomist, surgeon, and medical illustrator|journal=Spine|volume=24|issue=21|pages=2282–2289|issn=0362-2436|pmid=10562998|doi=10.1097/00007632-199911010-00019}}</ref> In 1752, the rapid growth of medical schools in England and the pressing demand for cadavers led to the passage of the Murder Act. This allowed medical schools in England to legally dissect bodies of executed murderers for anatomical education and research and also aimed to prevent murder. To further increase the supply of cadavers, the government increased the number of crimes in which hanging was a punishment. Although the number of cadavers increased, it was still not enough to meet the demand of anatomical and medical training.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Ghosh |first=Sanjib Kumar |date=2017-03-02 |title=Human cadaveric dissection: a historical account from ancient Greece to the modern era |journal=Anatomy & Cell Biology |volume=48 |issue=3 |pages=153–169 |doi=10.5115/acb.2015.48.3.153 |pmc=4582158|pmid=26417475}}</ref>

Since few bodies were voluntarily donated for dissection, criminals that were hanged for murder were dissected. However, there was a shortage of bodies that could not accommodate the high demand of bodies.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Mitchell |first1=Piers D |last2=Boston |first2=Ceridwen |last3=Chamberlain |first3=Andrew T |last4=Chaplin |first4=Simon |last5=Chauhan |first5=Vin |last6=Evans |first6=Jonathan |last7=Fowler |first7=Louise |last8=Powers |first8=Natasha |last9=Walker |first9=Don |date=2017-02-17 |title=The study of anatomy in England from 1700 to the early 20th century |journal=Journal of Anatomy |volume=219 |issue=2 |pages=91–99 |doi=10.1111/j.1469-7580.2011.01381.x |issn=0021-8782 |pmc=3162231 |pmid=21496014}}</ref> To cope with shortages of cadavers and the rise in medical students during the 17th and 18th centuries, [[body-snatching]] and even [[anatomy murder]] were practiced to obtain cadavers.<ref name="Rosner, Lisa. 2010">Rosner, Lisa. 2010. The Anatomy Murders. Being the True and Spectacular History of Edinburgh's Notorious Burke and Hare and of the Man of Science Who Abetted Them in the Commission of Their Most Heinous Crimes. University of Pennsylvania Press</ref> 'Body snatching' was the act of sneaking into a graveyard, digging up a corpse and using it for study. Men known as '[[Resurrectionists in the United Kingdom|resurrectionists]]' emerged as outside parties, who would steal corpses for a living and sell the bodies to anatomy schools. The leading London anatomist [[John Hunter (surgeon)|John Hunter]] paid for a regular supply of corpses for his anatomy school.<ref>{{cite book | title=The Knife Man: Blood, Body-Snatching and the Birth of Modern Surgery | publisher=Bantam | author=Moore, Wendy | year=2006 | pages=87–95 and passim | isbn=978-0-553-81618-1}}</ref> During the 17th and 18th centuries, the perception of dissections had evolved into a form of capital punishment. Dissections were considered a dishonor. The corpse was mutilated and not suitable for a funeral. By the end of the 18th century, many European countries had passed legislation similar to the Murder Act in England to meet the demand of fresh cadavers and to reduce crime. Countries allowed institutions to use unclaimed bodies of paupers, prison inmates, and people in psychiatric and charitable hospitals for dissection.<ref name=":0" /> Unfortunately, the lack of bodies available for dissection and the controversial air that surrounded anatomy in the late 17th century and early 18th century caused a halt in progress that is evident by the lack of updates made to anatomical texts of the time between editions. Additionally, most of the investigations into anatomy were aimed at developing the knowledge of physiology and surgery. Naturally this meant that a close examination of the more detailed aspects of anatomy that could advance anatomical knowledge was not a priority.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Science and the Practice of Medicine in the Nineteenth Century|last=Bynum|first=W.F.|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1994|isbn=978-0-521-27205-6|pages=12}}</ref>

Paris medicine was notorious for its influence on medical thought and its contributions to medical knowledge. The new hospital medicine in France during the late 18th century was brought about in part by the Law of 1794 which made physicians and surgeons equals in the world of medical care. The law came as a response to the increase demand for medical professionals capable of caring for the increase in injuries and diseases brought about by French Revolution. The law also supplemented schools with bodies for anatomical lessons. Ultimately this created the opportunity for the field of medicine to grow in the direction of "localism of pathological anatomy, the development of appropriate diagnostic techniques, and the numerical approach to disease and therapeutics."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bynum |first=W. F. |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/422126074 |title=Science and the practice of medicine in the nineteenth century |date=1994 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=0-521-25109-5 |oclc=422126074}}</ref>

The British Parliament passed the [[Anatomy Act 1832]], which finally provided for an adequate and legitimate supply of corpses by allowing legal dissection of executed murderers. The view of anatomist at the time, however, became similar to that of an executioner. Having one's body dissected was seen as a punishment worse than death, "if you stole a pig, you were hung. If you killed a man, you were hung and then dissected." Demand grew so great that some anatomists resorted to dissecting their own family members as well as robbing bodies from their graves.<ref>{{cite book |last=Roach |first=Mary |title=Stiff: The curious Lives of Human Cadavers |url=https://archive.org/details/stiffcuriouslive00roac_145 |url-access=registration |year=2003| publisher=W.W. Norton |location=New York |pages=[https://archive.org/details/stiffcuriouslive00roac_145/page/n39 37]–57|isbn=9780393050936 }}</ref>

Many Europeans interested in the study of anatomy traveled to Italy, then the centre of anatomy. Only in Italy could certain important research methods be used, such as dissections on women. [[Realdo Colombo]] (also known as Realdus Columbus) and [[Gabriele Falloppio]] were pupils of [[Andreas Vesalius|Vesalius]]. Columbus, as Vesalius's immediate successor in Padua, and afterwards professor at Rome, distinguished himself by describing the shape and cavities of the heart, the structure of the pulmonary artery and aorta and their valves, and tracing the course of the blood from the right to the left side of the heart.<ref>{{cite book | title=The Scientific Renaissance 1450-1630 | publisher=Fontana | author=Boas, Marie | year=1970 | pages=254–256}}</ref>

The rise in anatomy lead to various discoveries and findings. In 1628, English physician William Harvey observed circulating blood through dissections of his father's and sister's bodies. He published ''De moto cordis et sanguinis'', a treatise in which he explained his theory.<ref name=":0" /> In Tuscany and Florence, Marcello Malpighi founded microscopic anatomy, and Nils Steensen studied the anatomy of lymph nodes and salivary glands. By the end of the 17th century, Gaetano Zumbo developed anatomical wax modeling techniques.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Orlandini |first1=Giovanni E.|last2=Paternostro |first2=Ferdinando|date=2010 |title=Anatomy and anatomists in Tuscany in the 17th century|journal=Italian Journal of Anatomy and Embryology = Archivio Italiano di Anatomia ed Embriologia |volume=115|issue=3 |pages=167–174 |pmid=21287970}}</ref> Antonio Valsalva, a student of Malpighi and a professor of anatomy at University of Bologna, was one of the greatest anatomists of the time. He is known by many as the founder of anatomy and physiology of the ear.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Wells|first=Walter A.|date=1948-02-01|title=Antonio valsalva — pioneer in applied anatomy — 1666–1723 |journal=The Laryngoscope |volume=58 |issue=2 |pages=105–117 |doi=10.1002/lary.5540580202|pmid=18904602|s2cid=70524656}}</ref> In the 18th century, [[Giovanni Batista Morgagni]] related pre-mortem symptoms with post-mortem pathological findings using pathological anatomy in his book ''De Sedibus''.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=van den Tweel|first1=Jan G.|last2=Taylor|first2=Clive R.|date=2017-03-02|title=A brief history of pathology|journal=Virchows Archiv |volume=457|issue=1|pages=3–10|doi=10.1007/s00428-010-0934-4 |pmc=2895866|pmid=20499087}}</ref> This led to the rise of morbid anatomy in France and Europe. The rise of morbid anatomy was one of the contributing factors to the shift in power between doctors and physicians, giving power to the physicians over patients.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Harley |first=David |date=1994-04-01 |title=Political Post-mortems and Morbid Anatomy in Seventeenth-century England|journal=Social History of Medicine |volume=7|issue=1 |pages=1–28|doi=10.1093/shm/7.1.1|pmid=11639292 }}</ref> With the invention of the Stethoscope in 1816, R.T.H. Laennec was able to help bridge the gap between a symptomatic approach to medicine and disease, to one based on anatomy and physiology. His disease and treatments were based on "pathological anatomy" and because this approach to disease was rooted in anatomy instead of symptoms, the process of evaluation and treatment were also forced to evolve.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Science and the Practice of Medicine in the Nineteenth Century|last=Bynum|first=W.F.|publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1994 |isbn=978-0-521-27205-6 |pages=41}}</ref> From the late 18th century to the early 19th century, the work of professionals such as Morgagni, Scott Matthew Baillie, and [[Xavier Bichat]] served to demonstrate exactly how the detailed anatomical inspection of organs could lead to a more empirical means of understanding disease and health that would combine medical theory with medical practice. This "pathological anatomy" paved the way for "clinical pathology that applied the knowledge of opening up corpses and quantifying illnesses to treatments."<ref>{{Cite book|title=Medicine and Society in Early Modern Europe |last=Lindemann|first=Mary|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2010|isbn=978-0-521-73256-7|pages=111–112}}</ref> Along with the popularity of anatomy and dissection came an increasing interest in the preservation of dissected specimens. In the 17th century, many of the anatomical specimens were dried and stored in cabinets. In the Netherlands, there were attempts to replicate Egyptian mummies by preserving soft tissue. This became known as Balsaming. In the 1660s the Dutch were also attempting to preserve organs by injecting wax to keep the organ's shape. Dyes and mercury were added to the wax to better differentiate and see various anatomical structures for academic and research anatomy. By the late 18th century, Thomas Pole published ''The Anatomic Instructor'', which detailed how to dry and preserve specimens and soft tissue.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Mitchell|first1=Piers D |last2=Boston |first2=Ceridwen|last3=Chamberlain|first3=Andrew T |last4=Chaplin |first4=Simon |last5=Chauhan|first5=Vin |last6=Evans|first6=Jonathan |last7=Fowler|first7=Louise|last8=Powers |first8=Natasha |last9=Walker |first9=Don |date=2017-03-02 |title=The study of anatomy in England from 1700 to the early 20th century |journal=Journal of Anatomy |volume=219|issue=2 |pages=91–99 |doi=10.1111/j.1469-7580.2011.01381.x |pmc=3162231|pmid=21496014}}</ref>

===19th century anatomy===
{{further|History of anatomy in the 19th century}}
During the 19th century, anatomical research was extended with [[histology]] and [[developmental biology]] of both humans and [[animal]]s. Women, who were not allowed to attend medical school, could attend the anatomy theatres. From 1822 the Royal College of Surgeons forced unregulated schools to close.<ref name="McLachlan, J. 2006. p.243-53">{{cite journal |author1=McLachlan J. |author2=Patten D. | year = 2006 | title = Anatomy teaching: ghosts of the past, present and future | journal = Medical Education | volume = 40 | issue = 3| pages = 243–53 | doi=10.1111/j.1365-2929.2006.02401.x|pmid=16483327 |s2cid=30909540 }}</ref> Medical museums provided examples in comparative anatomy, and were often used in teaching.<ref>{{cite journal | author = Reinarz J | year = 2005 | title = The age of museum medicine: The rise and fall of the medical museum at Birmingham's School of Medicine | journal = Social History of Medicine | volume = 18 | issue = 3| pages = 419–37 | doi=10.1093/shm/hki050}}</ref>

The history of anatomy in the United States is a rich and multifaceted narrative, closely tied to the evolution of medical education and scientific discovery. Anatomical education in the U.S. began in the mid-18th century, with notable pioneers like William Shippen Jr., who delivered public lectures on anatomy, including human dissections, in Philadelphia starting in 1762. The 19th century marked a significant expansion in anatomical education, fueled by the rapid growth of medical schools. However, this era also faced challenges, including a shortage of cadavers for dissection, which led to grave robbing and social unrest.

Reforms and innovations in anatomical education emerged during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Influential educators such as Franklin Paine Mall at the University of Michigan introduced scientific rigor and promoted student-centered learning, setting new standards for teaching anatomy. By the 20th century, anatomy departments began evolving, often merging with disciplines like cell biology to reflect broader scientific advancements. Despite these changes, anatomy has remained a cornerstone of medical education, with modern techniques such as medical imaging and virtual dissection now complementing traditional methods of study.

==Today's anatomical research==
Anatomical research in the past hundred years has taken advantage of technological developments and growing understanding of sciences such as [[evolutionary biology|evolutionary]] and [[molecular biology]] to create a thorough understanding of the body's organs and structures. Disciplines such as [[endocrinology]] have explained the purpose of glands that anatomists previously could not explain; medical devices such as [[MRI]] machines and [[CAT scan]]ners have enabled researchers to study organs, living or dead, in unprecedented detail. Progress today in anatomy is centered in the development, evolution, and function of anatomical features, as the macroscopic aspects of human anatomy have largely been catalogued. Non-human anatomy is particularly active as researchers use techniques ranging from [[finite element analysis]] to molecular biology.

To save time, some medical schools such as Birmingham, England have adopted [[prosection]], where a demonstrator dissects and explains to an audience, in place of dissection by students. This enables students to observe more than one body. Improvements in colour images and photography means that an anatomy text is no longer an aid to dissection but rather a central material to learn from. Plastic [[anatomical model]]s are regularly used in anatomy teaching, offering a good substitute to the real thing. Use of living models for anatomy demonstration is once again becoming popular within teaching of anatomy. Surface landmarks that can be [[palpated]] on another individual provide practice for future clinical situations. It is possible to do this on oneself; in the Integrated Biology course at the [[University of Berkeley]], students are encouraged to "introspect"<ref>Diamond M. 2005. Integrative Biology 131 - Lecture 01: Organization of Body. Berkeley, University of California.</ref> on themselves and link what they are being taught to their own body.<ref name="McLachlan, J. 2006. p.243-53"/>

In Britain, the [[Human Tissue Act 2004]] has tightened up the availability of resources to anatomy departments.<ref>{{Cite news |last=BBC News |date=2006-08-30 |title=Q&A: Human Tissue Act |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4944018.stm |access-date=2024-07-01 |language=en-GB}}</ref> The outbreaks of [[bovine spongiform encephalitis]] (BSE) in the late 1980s and early 1990s further restricted the handling of brain tissue.<ref name="McLachlan, J. 2006. p.243-53"/><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Demiryurek D. |author2 = Bayramoglu A|author3=Ustacelebi S. | year = 2002 | title = Infective agents in fixed human cadavers: a brief review and suggested guidelines | doi =10.1002/ar.10143 | journal = Anatomical Record | volume = 269 | issue = 1| pages = 194–7 |pmid = 12209557|s2cid = 20948827| doi-access = free }}</ref>

The controversy of [[Gunther von Hagens]] and public displays of dissections, preserved by [[plastination]], may divide opinions on what is ethical or legal.<ref>British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) News. 2002 Controversial autopsy goes ahead. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/2493291.stm {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070124102852/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/2493291.stm |date=2007-01-24 }} Accessed 22 April 2008.</ref>

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

===Works cited===
{{refbegin|2}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |last1=Adamson |first1=Peter |author1-link=Peter Adamson (philosopher) |date=2021a |title=Abu Bakr al-Razi |encyclopedia=The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy |editor1-last=Zalta |editor1-first=Edward N. |editor1-link=Edward N. Zalta |url=https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/sum2021/entries/abu-bakr-al-razi}}
* {{cite book |last1=Adamson |first1=Peter |author1-link=Peter Adamson (philosopher) |date=2021b |title=Great Medieval Thinkers: al-Rāzī |location=New York |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=9780197555033 |doi=10.1093/oso/9780197555033.001.0001}}
* {{cite book |last1=Dānish-pazhūh |first1=Muḥammad Taqī |date=1964 |title=Kitāb al-asrār wa-Sirr al-asrār |location=Tehran |publisher=Commission Nationale Iranienne pour l'UNESCO |url=http://dlib.nyu.edu/aco/book/columbia_aco001618}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |last1=Goodman |first1=L.E |date=1960–2007 |title=al-Rāzī |editor1-last=Bearman |editor1-first=P. |editor2-last=Bianquis |editor2-first=Th. |editor3-last=Bosworth |editor3-first=C.E. |editor4-last=van Donzel |editor4-first=E. |editor5-last=Heinrichs |editor5-first=W.P. |encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition |doi=10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_6267}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |last1=Iskandar |first1=Albert Z. |date=2008 |title=Al-Rāzī |editor1-last=Selin |editor1-first=Helaine |editor1-link=Helaine Selin |encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures |edition=2nd |pages=155–156 |location=Berlin |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-1-4020-4559-2}}
* {{cite book |last1=Koetschet |first1=Pauline |date=2019 |title=Abū Bakr al-Rāzī: Doutes sur Galien. Introduction, édition et traduction |series=Scientia Graeco-Arabica |volume=25 |location=Berlin |publisher=De Gruyter |doi=10.1515/9783110629767 |isbn=9783110629767 |s2cid=189234965}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |last1=Kraus |first1=Paul |author1-link=Paul Kraus (Arabist) |last2=Pines |first2=Shlomo |author2-link=Shlomo Pines |date=1913–1936 |title=al-Rāzī |encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia of Islam, First Edition (1913–1936) |editor1-last=Houtsma |editor1-first=M. Th. |editor2-last=Arnold |editor2-first=T.W. |editor3-last=Basset |editor3-first=R. |editor4-last=Hartmann |editor4-first=R. |doi=10.1163/2214-871X_ei1_SIM_3693}}
* {{cite book |last1=Kraus |first1=Paul |author1-link=Paul Kraus (Arabist) |date=1939 |title=Abi Bakr Mohammadi Filii Zachariae Raghensis: Opera Philosophica, fragmentaque quae supersunt. Pars Prior |series=Universitatis Fouadi I litterarum facultatis publicationum |volume=22 |location=Cairo |publisher=Jāmiʿat Fuʾād al-Awwal |oclc=496583777}}
* {{cite book |last1=Mohaghegh |first1=Mehdi |author1-link=Mehdi Mohaghegh |date=1993 |title=Kitâb Al – Shukûk ʻAlâ Jâlînûs |location=Tehran |publisher=International Institute of Islamic Though and Civilization |oclc=257281952}}
* {{Encyclopædia Iranica |volume=12 |fascicle=1 |last=Richter-Bernburg |first=Lutz |title=Ḥāwi, al- |pages=64–67 |url=https://iranicaonline.org/articles/hawi-medical-book}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |last1=Walker |first1=Paul E. |date=1998 |title=al-Razi, Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Zakariyya' (d. 925) |editor1-last=Craig |editor1-first=Edward |editor1-link=Edward Craig (philosopher) |encyclopedia=Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy |doi=10.4324/9780415249126-H043-1 |isbn=9780415250696}}
{{refend}}

==Bibliography==
{{See also|Bibliography of biology#Anatomy|label 1=Bibliography of anatomy}}
{{commons category|History of anatomy}}
*{{ cite book | title= Dutch Anatomy and Clinical Medicine in 17th-Century Europe | author= Knoeff, Rina | publisher= Leibniz Institute of European History | year=2012| url= http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0159-2012060623 }}
*{{ cite book | title=The Body in Parts: Discourses and Anatomies in Early Modern Europe | author=Mazzio, C. | publisher=Routledge | year=1997 | isbn=978-0-415-91694-3 }}
*{{cite book | title = The Greatest Benefit to Mankind: A Medical History of Humanity from Antiquity to the Present | last = Porter | first = R. | year = 1997 | publisher = Harper Collins | isbn = 978-0-00-215173-3 }}
*{{ cite book | title=The Body Emblazoned: Dissection and the Human Body in Renaissance Culture | author=Sawday, J. | publisher=Routledge | year=1996 | isbn=978-0-415-15719-3 }}

==External links==
*[https://www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/historicalanatomies/browse.html Historical Anatomies on the Web. National Library of Medicine.] Selected images from notable anatomical atlases.
* [http://link.library.utoronto.ca/anatomia/ Anatomia 1522-1867: Anatomical Plates from the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library]
* [http://www.hapsweb.org Human Anatomy & Physiology Society] A society to promote communication among teachers of human anatomy and physiology in colleges, universities, and related institutions.

{{History of biology}}
{{History of medicine}}
{{History of science}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:History Of Anatomy}}
[[Category:History of anatomy| ]]
[[Category:History of biology|Anatomy, history of]]