uispeccoll:

GUEST POST FROM THE JOHN MARTIN RARE BOOK ROOM!

Book : Anatomia Mundini

Author(s) : 

Mondino dei Luzzi & Johann Dryander

Year : written in 1316 by dei Luzzi, this copy was printed in 1541 by Dryander

Are you looking for some spoooooky, yet anatomically correct Halloween costume or decoration inspiration? Look no further than the “restorer of anatomy,” Mondino dei Luzzi! 

dei Luzzi was an Italian anatomist and professor of surgery. He is in fact remembered as one of the greatest because he created this detailed, albeit not always perfectly accurate, early anatomical text in 1316! The first of its kind! He also succeeded in reintroducing the practice of public dissection, allowing a wide audience of anatomists, physicians, and other medical students to learn about and observe the body in detail in the early 14th century. Chop, chop!

So if you’re watching some scary movies this Halloween, think of dei Luzzi and say, “Thanks, Mondino for these incredibly, horrifyingly accurate slasher scenes. Without public dissection or your anatomical text book we might never have known just how gross a spleen could be!” Or “Thanks, Mondino for inspiring the Italians who know the perfect way to creep out everyone who watches an Italian horror film to their very core.” Thanks, Mondino.

You can find this book in the John Martin Rare Book Room or on the Iowa Digital Library.

Happy Halloween!