The Beginning of the Anatomical Materials

—from the Perspective of Memento Mori Art and Anatomical Expressionism

Abstract

Modern medicine is said to have begun with anatomical research, which began with the 16th century anatomist Vesalius’ work “Fabrica.” The spread of anthropomorphic images based on the late medieval view of life and death called Memento Mori, the art of letterpress printing, and the birth of the art of printmaking contributed greatly to anatomical research in its early stages. This paper discusses the progression from “Fabrica” to “Gray’s Anatomy,” the classic anatomical book of the 19th century, from the art-historical perspective of anatomical expressionism.