A Revolutionary 16th Century Book on Human Anatomy

‘It could be described as a 16th century Google Maps for the human body,’ says books and manuscripts specialist Sven Becker of Vesalius’ De humani corporis fabrica. ‘It was a revolutionary publication at a time when human dissection was still profoundly taboo, and is an incredibly important work in its own right.’

It was in the process of researching the provenance of this rare book from 1543, however, that Becker made a remarkable discovery — it belonged to Hans Sloane (1660-1753), the royal physician and renowned connoisseur whose collection became the foundation of the British Museum.