THE ANATOMICAL RECORD (NEW ANAT.) 261:5–10, 2000 HISTORICAL NOTE Anatomical Waxwork Modeling: The History of the Bologna Anatomy Museum NADIR M. MARALDI,* GIOVANNI MAZZOTTI, LUCIO COCCO, AND FRANCESCO A. MANZOLI n order to describe the Museum of models attributed to Zumbo are con- cole Lelli (1702–1776). This artist, Human Anatomy of the University served at the Specola Museum in Flo- who won the Marsigli prize for human Iof Bologna, one must also intro- rence. figure drawing, had a special interest duce the institution which houses it. The first group of anatomical prep- in the study of anatomy, which he The Alma Mater Studiorum Bononien- arations of the Museum of Bologna considered as a sort of grammar for sis, the oldest university in the world, collection was originally located at the representing the language of the hu- was founded at the beginning of the Institute of Sciences, founded in 1711 man body. In this contest, the use of second millennium. The Medical by Luigi Ferdinando Marsigli. This in- the so-called notomie, statues of School of the University of Bologna is stitution was designed to renew atten- skinned bodies, was considered essen- less ancient; nevertheless, with more tion to scientific observation and ex- tial for reaching truth and beauty in than 600 years of history, it represents perimental research in all fields of reproducing reality by artistic inter- a formidable piece of evidence for the natural sciences which, in the aca- pretation. Artistic notomie, in clay, development of human thought. The demic tradition, tended towards ab- wood, and wax, were the first models birth of the Medical School was stract theorization. Marsigli ad- of the human body, whose anatomical around 1288, the period in which dressed a document to the University perfection, obtained by careful repre- Taddeo Alerotti gave the first public asserting that the study of anatomy sentation of cadavers used for dissec- anatomical lectures. In 1316, the ana- required, as in foreign medical tion, might serve as a reference stan- tomical treatise Anathomia Mundini dard for the study of anatomy. In this of Mondino de’ Liuzzi (1270–1326) way, foundations were laid establish- was published, which reintroduced The anatomical tradition, ing the art of waxwork modeling of the use of anatomical dissection aban- anatomical specimens for the study of doned since the 3rd century B.C. (Ero- based on the use of medical practice at the University of filo and Erasistrato of the Alexandrine human cadavers, Bologna (Ruggeri and Bartoli Bar- School). sotti, 1997). The anatomical tradition, based on represents the basis of The nucleus of the historical collec- the use of human cadavers, represents anatomical waxwork tion of the Museum of Anatomy is the basis of anatomical waxwork represented by the eight models of the modeling. The first documentation of modeling. whole human body commissioned to the use of this technique in Bologna is Ercole Lelli by the Bologna Cardinal found in the biography of the abbot Prospero Lambertini, when in 1742 he Gaetano Zumbo (1656–1701). Born in schools, a direct exhibition of the became Pope Benedetto XIV. Two Siracusa, Zumbo went to Bologna corpses and the use of dissection. The wax statues represent male and fe- around 1695 to improve his knowl- Institute of Sciences, whose origin male nudes; the other skinned statutes edge of anatomy. Some waxwork and development diverged from that represent the different layers of the of the University, included the Ana- muscles, to the skeleton (Fig. 1). tomical Chamber, which initially re- These specimens, as well as those rep- ceived a group of dry specimens resenting all the muscles made by Dr. Maraldi is Professor of Histology and Director of the Department Scienze (mummified parts of cadavers), as a Lelli between 1745 and 1766, are lo- Anatomiche Umane e Fisiopatologia gift of the family of the famous anat- cated in the principal corridor of the dell’Apparato Locomotore of the Medi- omist Antonio Maria Valsalva (1666– Museum, housed inside the original cal School at the University of Bologna. Drs. Mazzotti, Cocco, and Manzoli are 1723) to be used for practical demon- showcases. The marble dissecting ta- Professors of Anatomy in the same De- strations to medicine students. ble utilized by the famous scientist partment. As a result of constant use, this ma- *Correspondence to: Nadir M. Maraldi, and anatomist Luigi Galvanti is Institute of Human Anatomy, University terial progressively deteriorated. placed at one end of the corridor. The of Bologna, via Irnerio 48, 40126 Bolo- Therefore, an anatomical collection of collection increased during the fol- gna, Italy. Fax: 39-051-583593; E-mail: [email protected] models made of a durable material lowing 100 years, reaching more than was commissioned by the painter Er- 1,000 specimens by the mid-19th © 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc. 6 THE ANATOMICAL RECORD (NEW ANAT.) HISTORICAL NOTE century. About 200 fully restored daver preservation. However, at the ears,” as stated by the Academy Insti- specimens are now exhibited in the end of the 17th century, the University tutional Act (Manzoli and Mazzotti, museum which also includes a spe- of Bologna underwent a cultural crisis 1987). cialized library with very rare anatom- due to the dogmatism of the public The wax modeling at the Academy ical in folio works (Ruggeri, 1988). teaching. To compete with the Univer- was also done by Giovanni Manzolini, sity, several private academies were Lelli’s coworker in the period 1740– founded in Bologna in the fields of 1745, and by his wife Anna Morandi THE ORIGINS OF THE MUSEUM Arts, Philosophy, and Sciences. Manzolini, who was appointed an The study of anatomy has been widely Among them, the most famous was Anatomy teacher in 1760. Following practiced in Bologna since 1595, the Academy of Sciences, housed in Lelli’s death in 1766, his work was when the Anatomical Theater was es- the Poggi Palace, in which each continued mainly by Anna Morandi tablished inside the Archigymnasium. branch of the natural sciences was Manzolini until her death in 1774. The The Anatomical Theater was utilized represented in a cabinet, where speci- works by Ercole Lelli represented the mainly during the Carnival feast to mens, machines, and designs were ex- artistic gold standard of the Bo- perform public demonstrations on the hibited and used for experimental lognese wax modeling school, while cadavers of executed criminals. The training. The Cabinet of Anatomy, those of Anna Morandi Manzolini at- cold weather at that time of the year commissioned by Pope Benedetto tained an absolute anatomical accu- was suitable for dissection and ca- XIV to Ercole Lelli, was built in six racy. The Museum now houses 61 years, and the Anatomy Chamber was specimens handmade by Anna Mo- designed to contain the eight wax stat- randi Manzolini, probably under the ues and the exhibits of single bones supervision of Giovanni Manzolini. and muscles made by Lelli with the The specimens deal with different assistance of the sculptor Domenico parts of the human body, including Pio` and of Giovanni Manzolini. In ad- ear, nose, tongue, larynx, pharynx, dition to the exhibition rooms, the in- heart, lungs, female genitals, and the stitution, named Suppelletile Ana- fetus. The most impressive one, which tomica, included dissection and wax confirms the advanced knowledge of modeling rooms, in order to improve physiological connections between the medical studies with practical the nervous system and the muscles, training, since “Anatomy must be is the tablet of the extrinsic muscles of studied more with eyes than with the eye (Fig. 2). Figure 1. The Skinned Man by Ercole Lelli. Figure 2. Detailed reproductions of the human eye, by Anna Morandi Manzolini. At the Waxwork on a natural skeleton showing the center of the tablet: the eye bulb with the extrinsic muscles. The specific action of each surface muscles. muscle on eye position is represented in the six peripheral waxworks. HISTORICAL NOTE THE ANATOMICAL RECORD (NEW ANAT.) 7 organization of the cervical, brachial, crural, and ischiatic plexus. A few waxworks from the second half of the 18th century are part of the collection. Among them, the eight great models of the brain made by Cesare Bettini under the guidance of the anatomist Luigi Calori around 1850, and the skull with a very accurate representa- tion of the brain by Leonida Berti. The Museum also includes the Calori col- lection consisting of about 1,500 hu- man skulls. The collection maintains its anthropological interest, although the scientific validity of its classifica- tion has been disputed. WAXWORK MAIN COLLECTIONS Ercole Lelli (1702–1766) Eight display cabinets made from painted wood and glass of the 18th century, restored after World War II, contain the representation of the whole body motor apparatus. They are aligned along the right side of the monumental corridor on the first floor of the Institute of Human Anatomy. The first two cabinets, one in front of the other, contain the nude statues of a young man and a blond woman, re- ferred to as Adam and Eve, whose sur- faces are carefully modeled to under- line the muscular and vascular structures. Four statues are dedicated Figure 3. The Venerina by Clemente Susini. The surface layers and the organs are remov- to the representation of the myologi- able and can be taken apart. The heart valves and the fetus inside the uterus are visible. cal system from the more superficial muscle layers to the deeper ones. All Between 1789 and 1815, the collec- layers are removable in order to reveal these statues were made according to tion was improved by the acquisition the inner organs, many of which are the classical Bolognese school tech- of wax models made by Clemente also removable.