Friday, February 13, 2009

The Anatomy of Human Bodies Epitomized, 1697






















Thomas Gibson (1647-1722) wrote this anatomy book, and I choose this particular heart for my valentine because a.) it's a pretty good drawing of a heart, and b.) he used the heart of a "10 year old boy" as a model for the drawing.

First published anonymously in 1682, The Anatomy of Human Bodies Epitomiz’d was probably the most successful English anatomical textbook published to date – it was ultimately issued in eight editions. Gibson, the Physician-General to the English army, based his comprehensive text on Alexander Read’s Manual of Anatomy. However, the content was so extensively revised and supplemented Gibson claimed authorship. Gibson listed his principal sources (some 33 titles by 27 authors) which was an uncommon practice at the time.[source]

2 comments:

Doug said...

That is a fairly impressive heart, especially since it must have come from a 10-year-old criminal. Burn in hell, cookie thief.

I want LOL Manuscripts to be my day-after valentine.

Sarah Redmond said...

To be fair, it might have just been the heart of a poor kid who starved to death or something. I was originally going to say something about this being a "sweet heart for your sweetheart," but that's a pun and I wouldn't tread on your territory.

(This is the creepiest valentine's day conversation ever. You and LOL Manuscripts deserve each other.)