When Andreas Vesalius published his De Humani Corporis Fabrica Libri Septem (On the Fabric of the Human Body) in 1543, its accurate depiction of the human body from close observation of dissected bodies overturned centuries of medical dogma and led the way for the modern study of anatomy. William Richardson and John Carman have been translating this treatise; the third volume, containing Books III and IV from the original work, focusing on the veins, arteries and nerves, has now been published (Jeremy Norman, $250). Although the accuracy of Vesalius' work on these soft tissues has not stood the test of time as well as the earlier skeletal work, the illustrations, like that of the portal vein shown here, are stunning. The vessels appear as if fixed in space, with the other internal organs simply invisible.

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