Encyclopaedia Anatomica

Let's get physical

From the eccentric Museo La Specola in Florence comes this amazing collection of waxworks depicting the human anatomy in all its dazzling complexity. The 27 wax bodies and 1500 part and organ studies that make up the museum’s collection are presented here; from skeletons to vein structures, organs to nerves, and arteries to the delicate pores of the skin, the human body is mapped out in meticulous and exacting detail. Texts explaining the human anatomy in laypersons’ terms and exploring the historical and cultural significance of the wax figures complete this "total body experience."

About the authors:
Georges Didi-Huberman is professor at the College of Social Sciences in Paris. His contribution underscores the tension inherent in this collection: between religious votive wax figures, mannerist art and wonder chambers and the Enlightenment.

Monika von Düring is Professor of Neuroanatomy at the Ruhr University in Bochum, Germany. Her brief medical explanations help to guide both lay-reader and medical expert through this graphic encyclopaedia of anatomy.

Marta Poggesi is a biologist, and has been curator of the Museo Zoologico La Specola since 1969. Parallel to research projects, she manages and catalogues the zoological collection, to which the anatomical wax bodies and parts belong.