Experienze . . . intorno a diverse viscere taglite a diversi animali viventi . . . dedicate all'illustrissimo Signore Francesco Redi
Publisher Information: Florence: F. Onofri, 1680.
Zambeccari, Giuseppe (1655-1728). Esperienze . . . intorno a diverse viscere tagliate a diversi animali viventi . . . dedicate all’illustrissimo Signore Francesco Redi. 4to. 30, [2]pp. Florence: Francesco Onofri, 1680. 250 x 182 mm. 19th-century marbled boards, paper spine with printed label, spine a bit soiled, light wear. Minimal spotting, staining on last few leaves but very good. Bookplate.
First Edition. One of the earliest works on experimental surgery, containing proof that the spleen is not essential to life. The Esperienze was the only book published by Zambeccari during his lifetime, and it has always been a rarity in commerce.
Zambeccari, the son of a government official, studied medicine at Pisa, where one of his professors was the anatomist Lorenzo Bellini. After graduating in 1679, Zambeccari moved to Florence where he continued his medical studies under Francesco Redi. In 1680, with Redi’s encouragement, Zambeccari performed the series of physiological experiments for which he is now known; these consisted of removing various organs from live dogs and other animals in order to gain a better understanding of the organs’ functions.
"One of the first series of experiments dealt with the removal of the spleen; several of the animals operated upon survived, and a few months later they were killed and carefully examined in order to discover what anatomical, pathological, and physiological changes had been caused by the removal of the organ. . . . Turning to the study of other organs, Zambeccari performed unilateral nephrectomies and discovered that the animal apparently was not incommoded by the operation. In other experiments he tied the common bile duct and thus demonstrated that bile is not formed in the gall bladder, as was often the common belief. Encouraged by the results of his experiments, he not only removed the bile duct but also fragments of hepatic tissue, and even entire lobes of the liver, always finding that a good percentage of the animals survived the operation. Zambeccari performed a resection of the cecum and finally went so far as to remove the pancreas and to ligate the mesenteric veins. He also studied the eyes and noted that pricking the cornea of various animals rapidly leads to the reconstitution of the aqueous humor" (Dictionary of Scientific Biography).
Garrison-Morton.com 3761. “Zambeccari, Giuseppe,” The Galileo Project (internet resource).
Book Id: 43724Price: $9,500.00