National Art Library Holds Rare Vesalius Anatomy and Margaret Bryan Astronomy Texts

At the V&A South Kensington, the National Art Library houses two exceptional scientific texts. One is "De humani corporis fabrica libri septem" by Andreas Vesalius, printed in Basel by Joannes Oporinus in 1543, recognized as the inaugural true anatomical textbook. Vesalius (1514–64), who served as a Professor at the University of Padua, enlisted Jan Steven van Calcar (1499–1546) to create over 250 woodcut illustrations. The library also features the second edition of Margaret Bryan's "A compendious system of astronomy," published in 1799, which originally appeared in 1797. Bryan (1759–1836), who established a girls' school, included her astronomy lectures in the book, where she referred to Uranus as Georgium Sidus. Both works are accessible in Special Collections following free registration and online catalogue requests.