Health & biology · 1543

Vesalius's anatomy

De humani corporis fabrica corrected Galen with direct human dissection and superb woodcuts.

Andreas Vesalius published the Fabrica in Basel in 1543, correcting about 200 of Galen's errors. Printing let its exact illustrations spread identically across Europe, founding modern anatomy.

See it in the living tree Wikipedia

Arcs above join it to what it stood on, arcs below to what it led to. The bar places this stretch on the tree's whole timeline.

What it built on 2

Movable-type printing press 1440
Galenic medicine 170

What it led to 2

Blood circulation 1628
Surgical anesthesia 1846

Related measurements

The dashed line marks when it first worked.

Life expectancy in the UK since 1543 Latest: 81.3 years (2023) Source: Our World in Data