Ars Publik » Medical

Anatomical Illustration of a Male Form

Evan — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 22:01:41 +0000

This public domain stock image comes from the National Institute of Health Collections, from the National Library of Medicine.

This unusual illustration depicts a heavily muscled man bound to a tree by one leg and one arm. This position is used to accentuate the complexities of his musculature.

This illustration is dated 1830 and signed, Clorion. This early creation date assures that this stock image it is in the public domain.

449 Kilobyte JPG. Hosted by the National Institute of Health website.

Illustrated Medical Figure with Cardiovascular System

Evan — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 22:01:09 +0000

This public domain stock image comes from the National Institute of Health Collections from the National Library of Medicine.

Originally an illustration from Bouglé: Le corpus humain et grandeur naturelle: planches coloriées et superposées, avec texte explicatif, this stock illustration depicts a male figure with few organs except the cardiovascular system. The heart, veins, and arteries are drawn in great detail and are colored so as to stand out against other organs.

Le Corps Humain et Grandeur Naturelle was published in 1899. This pre-1923 publication date ensures that this stock image it is in the public domain.

449 Kilobyte JPG. Hosted by the National Institute of Health website.

Illustrated Medical Figure with Musculature

Evan — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 21:58:27 +0000

This public domain stock image comes from the National Institute of Health Collections of the National Library of Medicine.

This illustrated medical stock image was originally published in Bouglé: Le corpus humain et grandeur naturelle: planches coloriées et superposées, avec texte explicatif. It depicts a male figure with skin removed exposing the bodies musculature. Some portions of the musculature are left out to reveal additional detail.

Le Corps Humain et Grandeur Naturelle was published in 1899. This pre-1923 publication date ensures that this stock image it is in the public domain.

356 Kilobyte JPG. Hosted by the National Institute of Health website.

Human Figure with Skeleton

Evan — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 21:57:42 +0000

This public domain stock image comes from the National Institute of Health Collections of the National Library of Medicine.

Published in the Le corps humain et grandeur naturelle : planches coloriées et superposées, avec texte explicatif in 1890, this illustrated stock image depicts the human skeleton with some internal organs. The soft tissue outline of the male figure is visible, with male organs in detail.

Le Corps Humain et Grandeur Naturelle was published in 1899. Because of this pre-1923 publication date, this stock image it is in the public domain.

356 Kilobyte JPG. Hosted by the National Institute of Health website.

Antique Microscopes

admin — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 21:41:44 +0000

This public domain image of antique microscopes comes from Robert Hooke’s 17th century text, Micrographia, which investigated the application of microscopes and telescopes in the study of biological organisms. This image in particular gives us a rendering of one of Hooke’s early microscopes.

Hooke lived during Newton’s time and exchanged a number of correspondences with him. They had a falling out after Hooke accused Newton of stealing his ideas on gravity and light, and only now have the scientist’s contributions been acknowledged. To quote Allan Chapman, Hooke is considered to be “England’s Leonardo.”

This text has an expired copyright, therefore it is in the public domain.

This public domain image is 364.57 KB, 1200×1903 px, and is hosted by the National Institute of Health.

Facial Musculature

admin — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 21:42:12 +0000

This public domain image is from an 18th century Dutch text and depicts the anatomy of the facial muscles. The author of the book is unknown but believed to have been a medical student, as the work was most likely the student’s dissertation, entitled Treatise on phsyiognomy

Physiognomy was a serious medical field for many centures, originating during Hippocrates’ time. It is the study of an individual’s character by making assumptions from their facial features. The word comes from the Greek physis, or nature, and gnomon, meaning judge.

Because this manuscript was published in the 1790s, it is in the public domain.

286.53 KB JPG. Hosted by the National Institute of Health website.

Human Skull

admin — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 21:20:47 +0000

This public domain image of a human skull is a drawing that was included in a 17th century Dutch medical textbook by Govard Bidloo. As you can see, the skull is presented from several angles so viewers can observe the bone structure. The letters adorning each bone correspond with the Latin name of the bone, for quick reference and study.

Because the text was published in 1690, it is in the public domain.

Hosted by the National Institute of Health website.

Child Skeleton

admin — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 21:10:17 +0000

This public domain image comes from anatomist Govard Bidloo’s 17th century Dutch text, Ontleding des menschelyken lichaams. The drawing depicts the skeleton of a child and was used by doctors to study the human body. This text is part of early modern Western medicine.

Since Bidloo’s work was published in 1690, it is in the public domain.

Hosted by the National Institute of Health website.

Brain Anatomy

admin — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 02:48:32 +0000

This is a public domain image from the NIH’s (National Institute of Health) History of Medicine Division from the National Library of Medicine. This illustration is part of Govard Bidloo’s Dutch anatomical atlas Ontleding des menschelyken lichaams, which experienced little success due to the rising costs of printing large medical volumes. However, Bidloo tried to break even by selling several hundred engravings from this work to an English anatomist, William Cowper, who published the 1698 Oxford text, Anatomy of the Human Bodies, with these images. The ownership of the engravings was debated after the publication of Cowper’s text.

This depiction of the human brain may seem grotesque by our modern standards, but it was very likely a cutting-edge likeness in the 17th century. The illustrations were created by Gérard de Lairesse, engraved by Abraham Blooteling, and Peter van Gunst (circa 1659-1724).

Ontleding des menschelyken lichaams was published in 1690 and contained this image. Because of this pre-1923 publication date, this image is in the public domain.

Hosted by the National Institute of Health website.