Vesalius, Andreas.

Folio (410 x 278mm.), woodcut title-page depicting a lecture hall with the dissection of a corpse, woodcut portrait of Vesalius (aged 28) with a dissected arm on *6v, woodcut initials, woodcut illustrations, woodcut and letterpress double-sided folding plate at m3, with another folding sheet signed m3, woodcut and letterpress folding plate at p4, woodcut printer's device on final verso, ruled in red, yellow initial-strokes, a few light pencil annotations, seventeenth-century calf, spine gilt in compartments, brown buckram slipcase, title-page repaired in gutter (with slight loss to edge of woodcut) and laid down, *2 with repaired tear (without loss but affecting text) and repaired in gutter, portrait with repaired marginal tear and small stain, a few small marginal wormholes (slightly affecting some printed marginalia), P1 with small marginal tear, tiny hole in V4 with loss of one letter, a few small stains on h1-2, stain on Bb2-3, binding repaired at corners and ends of spine, calf delaminating somewhat

François-Vincent Raspail (1794-1848), stamp at foot of title-page, sale, Paris, December 1912; François Moutier, bookplate, and his notes on this edition pasted to pastedown (dated December 1912); Librairie Thomas-Scheler, Paris, label on inside back cover

Cushing VI.A.1; Eimas 281; VD16 V910; Wellcome 6560

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

First edition of Vesalius's revolutionary treatise on the anatomy of the human body.

Vesalius became Professor of Surgery and Anatomy at the University of Padua, Europe's foremost medical school, at the precocious age of 23. He insisted on performing dissections personally (previous practice had left the actual dissection to assistants); the elaborate title-page illustration depicts Vesalius conducting such a dissection on a female body, surrounded by a seething mass of students (and even a monkey and a dog), including a self-portrait of the artist in the first row above the dissection table.

The numerous and elegant illustrations, including the title-page and the woodcut initials, were executed by Jan Stephan van Calcar (1499-1546), a student of Titian, who had also worked on Vesalius's Tabulae anatomicae sex of 1537-1538. The accuracy of the woodcuts led to frequent piracy, despite Vesalius's attempts to protect his work with various privileges (as stated at the foot of the title-page).

Vesalius's chosen printer for this monumental work, together with its Epitome published the same month, was Joannes Oporinus, a former assistant of Paracelsus and professor of Greek and of Latin, and one of the leading publishers in Basel. The letter written by Vesalius to Oporinus regarding the layout, the system of reference between text and image and the delivery of the woodcut blocks was reproduced in the prefatory matter to the book (*5r-v); Oporinus considered its contents to be of interest and use to the reader.