Human Anatomy

Before modern medical science could emerge, medical practitioners needed an accurate understanding of human anatomy. Without clear descriptions of the structure of the human body, it was impossible to learn what different bodily parts actually do. Once researchers understood how parts of the body worked, they were better able to devise medical therapies to restore proper functions.
Amazingly, no one knew much about human anatomy until 1543, when the Belgian anatomist Andreas Vesalius wrote De Humani Corporis Fabrica, Libri Septem (On the Structure of the Human Body, in Seven Books). For centuries, exploration of the anatomy of human corpses was forbidden. In medieval Europe, knowledge about anatomy was based largely on the teachings of the Roman physician Galen (129-199?). Galen's anatomical descriptions were based on dissections of animals, which differ in many ways from humans. But contradicting Galen was dangerous because the powerful Roman Catholic Church accepted his findings as gospel. A few brave souls had tried to correct some of Galen's errors, but their work was lost for centuries.
Ambitious, driven, and ruthless, 23-year-old Vesalius received his medical degree in 1537 from the University of Padua and was immediately appointed head of surgery and anatomy there. As a student, and later as a scientist, he recovered human corpses from cemeteries late at night. He even encouraged his students to note patients who were at death's door so that he could steal their bodies for dissection before they were buried. Vesalius slept, night after night, with corpses in his own bedroom, and he hired Italy's greatest artists to draw what he found.
In 1543 Vesalius completed his seven-book masterpiece, richly illustrated with more than 200 magnificent drawings. Many consider it one of the greatest medical books ever published. This monumental work gave medicine a precious gift: For the first time, human anatomy was based on careful dissection and observation rather than on a rigid orthodoxy rooted in ancient texts.
source: encarta encyclopedia