Andreas Vesalius Biography

Andreas Vesalius was a 16th century Flemish physician, widely referred to as the founding father of the modern human anatomy. He was a major figure of the scientific revolution and his greatest achievement was that of reintroducing human anatomy and its importance to the people. He was the first to lead the way to independent investigation in the examination of the structure of the human body. After conducting initial research, he became certain that it was absolutely essential to analyze real corpses to study the human body. He resurrected the use of human dissection, regardless of the strict ban by the Catholic Church. Basing his observations on self-made dissections, he wrote and illustrated the first comprehensive textbook of anatomy. His book ‘De Humani Commis Fabrica’ (On the Structure of the Human Body) is one of the most important works about human anatomy. The seven volumes of the book laid down a solid understanding of human anatomy as the groundwork for all medical practice and curing. The book gave anatomy a new language and proved to be the most extensive and accurate description of the human body of its time. He revolutionized the study of biology and the practice of medicine by his careful description of the anatomy of the human body.