Death defied : the anatomy lessons of Frederik Ruysch
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Bibliographic Information
Death defied : the anatomy lessons of Frederik Ruysch
(History of science and medicine library, v. 18)
Brill, 2011
- : hardback
- Other Title
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Doodskunstenaar
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Note
Includes bibliographical references and index
Description and Table of Contents
Description
From around 1650 until well into the nineteenth century, Frederik Ruysch enjoyed international fame as an anatomist. He owed his renown to a preparation method that greatly aided early-modern scientists in their exploration of the human body and transformed dissection from a messy business into a widely admired art. Ruysch's anatomical collection was one of Amsterdam's tourist attractions, for his embalmed bodies were astonishingly lifelike in appearance. The visitors who gazed with amazement at his preparations included the Russian tsar Peter the Great, who was so moved by the sight of an embalmed boy that he kneeled down to kiss him. The tsar later bought Ruysch's entire collection and had all the specimens shipped to St Petersburg, where they still attract visitors from all over the world.
Table of Contents
List of Figures
Prologue in St Petersburg
1 The Anatomy Lesson
Apothecary's Apprentice
Anatomical Knowledge
Heroes
Examination
Family
Louis de Bils
Discoveries
Idle Boasting
Vivisection
Descartes
Research
Preservation
Secret Formulas
Doctorate
Confrontation with De Bils
2 Established and Envied
Appointment in Amsterdam
Medical Bastions
An Established Anatomist
Hardened Wax
Research
Professorship
Anatomy Lesson
Intellectuals in Power
Midwifery
Opposition
Gluttonous Tipplers
3 Under Fire
Accusations
Intimidation
Opposing Ruysch
A Nobody
New Knowledge, Old Certainties
The Insolvent Estate
Radical Supporters
4 Ruysch at Work
The Surgeons' Guild
The Battle for Bodies
The Amsterdam Hortus Botanicus
The House on the Bloemgracht
A Private Museum
Idle Inventions
Surgery
The Workplace
5 Rivals
Perfection
Rivalry
King Stupidity
Discrediting Rivals
Malice Aforethought
Peter the Great in Amsterdam
From Brain to Scrotum
Stone-cutting
Ruysch, Rau and Bidloo
6 The Collection
Capriccio Anatomico
Specimens
Animals
Wonders
The Republic of Letters
Lessons
Deceit
Visitors
Physico-theology
7 The Return of Peter the Great
Collection for Sale
A Return Visit
Secret
The Collection Moves East
8 Reproduction
Rachel
A Dutiful Father
Hendrik Ruysch's Lessons in Obstetrics
The Placenta
The Shaft
The Development of the Embryo
The Mystery of Reproduction
9 Latter Days
Approaching Death
Late Work
Discussion with Boerhaave
Plant Anatomy
Final Work
Father and Son
10 Ruysch's Legacy
Possible Successors
Broken Hip
The Estate
Tradition versus Enlightenment: Titsingh and Ulhoorn
Biography
The Secret
The Preparations in the Kunstkamera
Bibliography
Index
by "Nielsen BookData"