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Blurring the Lines: Private and Public Dissection in Renaissance Italy
Date
2010Type
ThesisDepartment
History
Degree Level
Honors Thesis
Degree Name
History
Abstract
From the fourteenth through the eighteenth century in Europe human dissection came to
be practiced for a variety of purposes. Private dissections, in the forms of judicial, holy, and
maternal anatomies, were performed, respectively, for the purposes of generating medical
evidence that could be used in court, finding markings inside of a holy individual’s body that
would confirm his or her sainthood, and to diagnose diseases which could have negative
implications for the future of a family. Public dissections, on the other hand, were performed in
university settings as a demonstrative and didactic technique, as well as a sort of public spectacle
to gain attention and prestige for the institution hosting the event. This paper will delve deeper
into these varieties of dissection, both public and private, as well as the extents to which they
intersected and worked together to build off of one another. The final part of the paper will also
consider an important anatomical figure – Andreas Vesalius – who performed anatomical work
both privately and publically and who, with the publishing of his famous anatomical text De
humani corporis fabrica in 1543, revolutionized medical and anatomical practice forever.
Permanent link
http://hdl.handle.net/11714/442Additional Information
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