Then there were 12: The illustrated cranial nerves from Vesalius to Soemmerring
Year: 2022
Type: article
Abstract: In the second century ce, Galen described seven pairs of cerebral nerves. He did not name the nerves, nor did he illustrate his work. Galen's descriptive texts survived until the mid-sixteenth century, when anatomists, influenced by the artistic and scientific revolution of the Renaissance, began a reformation in anatomical research. They closely observed their own dissected material and conveyed their results not only in words but commonly by lavish drawings. Many of the great anatomists reexamined the cerebral nerves, adding descriptive text or changing the classification. In 1778, Thomas Soemmerring (1755-1830) named 12 pairs of cerebral nerves upon which the modern cranial nerve nomenclature is based. Soemmerring matched his text with clear, decisive illustrations. This article describes the works of some of the great artists in the period from Vesalius to Soemmerring and how they used illustration to supplement and provide clarity for their textual descriptions of the cranial nerves.
Author: Catherine E. Storey
Institution: The University of Sydney
Language: English
Topic: History of Medicine Studies
Subfield: History
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W4214824802