Vesalius – 500 years on

Andreas Vesalius (1514-1564) is the most famous of all anatomists. In his On the fabric of the human body, Basle, 1543, he attacked his great Greek predecessor, Galen, for basing his influential anatomical theories on animal dissection and demanded that future descriptions of the human body should be based on human dissection. His ideas were quickly adopted, although not without some justified protests at his lack of respect for his teachers. His revolutionary ideas were supported by remarkable illustrations of a size and quality previously unknown. This talk by Professor Vivian Nutton will introduce the man and his work in the light of recent discoveries.