.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
Highlights from the Royal Society of Medicine
VESALIUS, Andreas (1514-64)
Epistola rationem modumque propinandi radicis Chynae decocti, quo nuper inuictissimus Carolus V. Imperator usus est, pertractans. Basel: Johannes Oporinus, October 1546.
Details
VESALIUS, Andreas (1514-64)
Epistola rationem modumque propinandi radicis Chynae decocti, quo nuper inuictissimus Carolus V. Imperator usus est, pertractans. Basel: Johannes Oporinus, October 1546.
A fine first edition of Vesalius’s work on the treatment of syphilis, complete with the portrait of the author which is often lacking.
Ostensibly, it discusses the preparation and administration of a decoction made from the China root (Smilax china), a plant newly introduced to Europe and touted as a treatment for syphilis and other ailments. Vesalius had administered it to Emperor Charles V, for whom he served as personal physician. However, the medical discussion is relatively brief. The bulk of the text is devoted to defending his anatomical methods and the revolutionary claims made in his earlier work, De humani corporis fabrica (1543), especially against Galenic tradition and critics like Jacobus Sylvius. He describes his frustrations with the reception of his work, including plagiarism and misinterpretation, and reveals autobiographical details, such as his teaching experiences, and a poignant account of burning his own manuscripts out of disillusionment. The woodcut initials in this edition were reused from the Fabrica, as was the woodcut portrait of the author. After being used a third time in the Fabrica of 1555, the portrait disappeared; it was not among the set of the Fabrica's woodblocks rediscovered in the twentieth century. Waller 9923 (lacking the portrait); Wellcome 6570 (lacking portrait and last leaf); Norman 2141 (lacking the final leaf).
Folio (272 x 181mm). Woodcut portrait of the author on B1v, 3 large, 1 medium and 1 small woodcut initials, errata leaf, printer's woodcut device on final leaf (occasional very minor spotting). 18th-century vellum over pasteboard, red morocco spine label lettered in gilt (a little darkened). Provenance: Royal Society of Medicine (ink stamps [Medical and Chirurgical Society], shelf labels on binding).
Epistola rationem modumque propinandi radicis Chynae decocti, quo nuper inuictissimus Carolus V. Imperator usus est, pertractans. Basel: Johannes Oporinus, October 1546.
A fine first edition of Vesalius’s work on the treatment of syphilis, complete with the portrait of the author which is often lacking.
Ostensibly, it discusses the preparation and administration of a decoction made from the China root (Smilax china), a plant newly introduced to Europe and touted as a treatment for syphilis and other ailments. Vesalius had administered it to Emperor Charles V, for whom he served as personal physician. However, the medical discussion is relatively brief. The bulk of the text is devoted to defending his anatomical methods and the revolutionary claims made in his earlier work, De humani corporis fabrica (1543), especially against Galenic tradition and critics like Jacobus Sylvius. He describes his frustrations with the reception of his work, including plagiarism and misinterpretation, and reveals autobiographical details, such as his teaching experiences, and a poignant account of burning his own manuscripts out of disillusionment. The woodcut initials in this edition were reused from the Fabrica, as was the woodcut portrait of the author. After being used a third time in the Fabrica of 1555, the portrait disappeared; it was not among the set of the Fabrica's woodblocks rediscovered in the twentieth century. Waller 9923 (lacking the portrait); Wellcome 6570 (lacking portrait and last leaf); Norman 2141 (lacking the final leaf).
Folio (272 x 181mm). Woodcut portrait of the author on B1v, 3 large, 1 medium and 1 small woodcut initials, errata leaf, printer's woodcut device on final leaf (occasional very minor spotting). 18th-century vellum over pasteboard, red morocco spine label lettered in gilt (a little darkened). Provenance: Royal Society of Medicine (ink stamps [Medical and Chirurgical Society], shelf labels on binding).
Brought to you by
Mark Wiltshire
Specialist