The “Spindle-Shanked Vesalius” Simulating Dissection in The Anatomia Humani Corporis by Rose Marie Conlin A Thesis presented to The University of Guelph In partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Art History and Visual Culture Guelph, Ontario, Canada © Rose Marie Conlin, August, 2019 ABSTRACT THE “SPINDLE-SHANKED VESALIUS” SIMULATING DISSECTION IN THE ANATOMIA HUMANI CORPORIS Rose Marie Conlin Advisor: University of Guelph 2019 Dr. Sally Hickson The Dutch anatomical atlas the Anatomia humani corporis (1685) has continuously been dismissed in medico-historical discourse as only having aesthetic value. Much of the existing literature that examines the Anatomia concludes that as a result of author and anatomist Govard Bidloo’s shortcomings in his descriptive text and poor reputation among his contemporaries, the atlas offers little contribution to the development of early modern anatomy. This thesis examines the atlas’s history of dismissal and seeks to recuperate it by contextualizing the atlas’s design and purpose within Dutch sociocultural discourse, specifically with regards to attitudes towards death, the female gender, and the Mennonite faith. I argue that the Anatomia’s significance in medical discourse lies in its adaptation of Dutch cultural attitudes to produce the first attempt at objectively simulating the dissection process in anatomical study, ultimately providing future anatomists with a sound reference in the absence of a cadaver. Acknowledgements I would like to thank my supervisor, Dr. Sally Hickson. Without her insight, support and guidance, this thesis would likely not have been completed. Your continuous understanding, empathy and support motivated me to balance the daily chaos of life with my desire to research and write something that I am fascinated (and very entertained) by. Thank you for always understanding, even when life decides to take me down a whirlpool. To my second and third readers, Dr. Christina Smylitopoulos and Dr. Sofie Lachapelle, your advice throughout the process of preparing and producing my research was incredibly helpful and insightful. Indeed, I have found many alternative avenues of research that I could have included within this thesis, had it been permissible to write an MA thesis the length of a PhD dissertation. I will certainly use it in my future studies. I would like to thank the School of Fine Art and Music at the University of Guelph for creating such an inclusive and opportunistic academic environment. To the faculty that have taught me, answered my endless questions, and have taken me on for research and work study, especially Dr. Andrew Sherwood, thank you for all of your encouragement, patience and for further inspiring me to continue in higher education. While writing this thesis, I suffered the passing of two very important figures in my life; my grandfather, Jack, and my horse, Simon. These two always supported me in any endeavor and eased my mind in difficult situations. They taught me to work hard for what I want and to always learn something useful from any experience. I am grateful for the love and support they provided me throughout my years and know that my efforts in persevering throughout all the hardships of the last year and a half to complete this thesis have made them proud. Grandpa, give me courage. Simon, give me strength. I would like to thank my colleagues Chrys Apostolatos and Sundeep Dhaliwal for their kind words of encouragement, support and the good laughs we have shared throughout the last two years. Finally, I would like to thank my mother, Donna, my sisters Melissa and Katy, and my nan, Maxine for always being in my corner to cheer me on. iii Table of Contents Title Page i Abstract ii Acknowledgements iii Table of Contents iv List of Figures v-vii Introduction 1 Chapter One 23 The “Spindle-Shanked Vesalius”: Bidloo and the Anatomia Chapter Two 41 “Muscle-Men” or “Machina”? Synthesizing the Subject and Object of Anatomy within the Cadaver Chapter Three 67 “A Moral Cancer”: The Controversial Representation of Female Anatomy in the Anatomia Chapter Four 97 The Anatomia, The Martyrs Mirror and “lived experience” Conclusion 121 “The very subject before us!”: The Anatomia’s Impact on Medical Discourse Appendix: Treatises that feature de Lairesse’s Illustrations 135 Figures 137 Works Cited 153 iv List of Figures (Fig. 1) Gerard de Lairesse, Frontispiece, 1685. Copperplate engraving, 30.3 cm x 47.8 cm. In Bidloo, Govard. Anatomia humani corporis (1685). Amsterdam: Rijksmuseum. (Fig. 2) Rear View of the Body (Page 194), 1543. Woodcut. In Andreas Vesalius, De corporis humani fabrica libri septem (1543). Maryland: National Library of Medicine. Fig. 3) Gerard de Lairesse, Anatomical study of the muscles of the upper body (Table 20), 1685. Copperplate engraving, 31.7 cm x 48.2 cm. in Bidloo, Govard. Anatomia humani corporis (1685). Amsterdam: Rijksmuseum. (Fig. 4) Frederik Ruysch, Allegory of Death, 1710. Printed by Cornelis Huyberts, Etching on paper, 38.7 cm x 33.3 cm. From Frederik Ruysch Thesaurus Animalium (Amsterdam, 1710). London: British Museum. (Fig. 5) Jan de Baen, The Corpses of the De Witt Brothers, 1672-1675. Oil on Canvas, 69.5 cm x 56 cm. Amsterdam: Rijksmuseum (Fig. 6) Anthonie van Borssom, Gibbets on the edge of the Volewijk, 1664-1665. Pen and ink on paper, 20.5 cm x 31.8 cm. Amsterdam: Rijksmuseum. (Fig. 7) Gerard de Lairesse, Anatomical study of the belly of a woman (Table 31), 1685. Copperplate engraving, 27.8 cm x 44.4 cm. In Bidloo, Govard. Anatomia humani corporis (1685). Amsterdam: Rijksmuseum. (Fig. 8) Vigesimaquinta Quinti Libri Figura (Female torso displaying female reproductive anatomy, Page 378), 1543. Woodcut. In Andreas Vesalius, De corporis humani fabrica libri septem (1543). Maryland: National Library of Medicine. v (Fig. 9) Gerard de Lairesse, Anatomical Study of the Abdomen of a Woman (Table 49), 1685. Copperplate engraving on paper, 33.2 cm x 47.8 cm. In Bidloo, Govard. Anatomia humani corporis (1685). Amsterdam: Rijksmuseum. (Fig. 10) Gabriel Metsu, The Hunter’s Present, 1658-1661. Oil on canvas, 51 cm x 48 cm. Amsterdam: Rijksmuseum. (Fig. 11) Gerard ter Borch, Gallant Conversation, known as ‘The Paternal Admonition,’ 1654. Oil on canvas, 71 cm x 73 cm. Amsterdam: Rijksmuseum. (Fig. 12) Gerard de Lairesse, Anatomical Study of the back of a woman (Table 27), 1685. Copperplate engraving on paper, 30.5 cm x 49.8 cm. In Bidloo, Govard. Anatomia humani corporis (1685). Amsterdam: Rijksmuseum. (Fig. 13) Gerard de Lairesse, Anatomical Study of the back of a woman, bound (Table 30), 1685. Copperplate engraving on paper, 30 cm x 47.4 cm. In Bidloo, Govard. Anatomia humani corporis (1685). Amsterdam: Rijksmuseum. (Fig. 14) Jan Luyken, The Burning of Barnabas in Cyprus (Page 11), 1685. Etching on paper, 12.2 cm x 14.9 cm. In Braght, Thieleman van, The Bloody Theatre, or Martyrs Mirror of the baptized or defenseless Christians (1685). Amsterdam: Rijksmuseum. (Fig. 15) Jan Luyken, The Apostle Bartholomew Skinned Alive (Page 26), 1685. Etching on paper, 12 cm x 14.9 cm. In Braght, Thieleman van, The Bloody Theatre, or Martyrs Mirror of the baptized or defenseless Christians (1685). Amsterdam: Rijksmuseum. vi (Fig. 16) Jan Luyken, Geleyn Cornelis, tortured and imprisoned in Breda, 1572 (Page 605), 1685-1685. Etching on paper, 11.5 x 14.3 cm. In Braght, Thieleman van, The Bloody Theatre, or Martyrs Mirror of the baptized or defenseless Christians (1685). Amsterdam: Rijksmuseum. vii Introduction In 1685 Govard Bidloo’s anatomical atlas Anatomia humani corporis centum & quinque tabulis, per artificiossis. G. de Lairesse ad vivum delineatis, demonstrata, veterum recentiorumque inventis explicata plurimisque, hactenus non detectis, illustrata was published in Amsterdam by a printing partnership formed by the widow of printer Joannes van Someren, the widow of printer Joannes van Dyk, the printer Theodore Boom, and the heirs of Dirk Boom.1 The atlas featured 105 of the largest copperplate engravings of anatomy ever produced, designed by the Flemish artist Gerard de Lairesse (1641-1711), and accompanied by a purely descriptive Latin text written by the anatomist and originator of the atlas, Govard Bidloo (1649-1713). Bidloo intended that the Anatomia supersede Andreas Vesalius’ De Humani Corporis Fabrica Libri Septum (1543), still considered the authoritative anatomical text during this period.2 The Anatomia featured a purely descriptive text, and more objective illustration of the human body in the process of dissection than previously seen before. However, Bidloo’s intentions for his atlas never came to fruition. Considered authorities on the Western medical illustrative tradition, K.B. Roberts and J.D.W. Tomlinson praise the great aesthetic value of the illustrations in the 1 Bidloo has been referred to interchangeably as Govard or Govert in medical history. For the remainder of this thesis, Bidloo’s atlas will be referred to solely as the Anatomia for the sake of concision. Two copies of the atlas are in the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library at the University of Toronto, one of which is digitized and accessible through the Library website. Govard Bidloo, Anatomia humani corporis centum & quinque tabulis, per artificiossis. G. de Lairesse ad vivum delineatis, demonstrata, veterum recentiorumque inventis explicata plurimisque, hactenus non detectis, illustrata (Amsterdam: for the widow of Joannes van Someren, the heirs of Joannes van Dyk, Henry Boom and widow of Theodore Boom, 1685). 2 Andreas Vesalius’s atlas will be referred to henceforth as the Fabrica. The Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library at the University of Toronto also holds a copy of the 1555 edition of Vesalius’s Fabrica. Andreas Vesalius, De Humani Corporis Fabrica Libri Septem (Basel: Johannes Oporinus, 1543). Govard Bidloo, “Auctor Lectori S.P.D.,” in Anatomia humani corporis centum & quinque tabulis, per artificiossis. G. de Lairesse ad vivum delineatis, demonstrata, veterum recentiorumque inventis explicata plurimisque, hactenus non detectis, illustrata (Amsterdam: for the widow of Joannes van Someren, the heirs of Joannes van Dyk, Henry Boom and widow of Theodore Boom, 1685), n.p.