The self-publicist whose medical text books caused a stir

Published nearly 500 years ago, Andreas Vesalius's medical text books occupy an important place in scientific history. Intricate art, unlike anything that had been seen before, sits alongside detailed text that sought to change the way bodies were dissected post mortem.

Cambridge University Library holds well-preserved copies of the Fabrica, and its companion piece the Epitome - publications that helped Vesalius realise his personal ambitions in the 16th Century court of the Holy Roman Empire....(Read the story from the BBC website)

I missed this story while cramming for my anatomy exam when it was first published last month.  Anatomy is not an easy subject for me, especially when illustrators are not particularly scrupulous when it comes to labelling, and it didn't help that my cheap-edition textbook was black-and-white, leaving me to my creative devices to colour the muscles and bones to differentiate them from each other.

Andreas Vesalius' drawings were simply amazing, considering the period when he made them, the clarity of the muscle groups would make studying so much more enlightening.

I do wish I have the chance to visit the Cambridge University Library to see the Fabrica and Epitome for myself someday.