1514-1564

Belgian Anatomist, Physician, and Surgeon

Andreas Vesalius revolutionized the study of anatomy, contributed immeasurably toward making medicine a rigorous empirical science, and wrote one of the most important books in medical history.

Andries van Wesel is generally known by the Latin form of his name, Andreas Vesalius. He was born in Brussels and destined to serve the Holy Roman Emperors. His great-great-grandfather, Peter Witing, was physician to Emperor Frederick III; his great-grandfather, Johannes Witing van Wesele (d. 1476), was physician to Frederick and Archduke Maximilian; his grandfather, Everart van Wesele (d. c. 1485), was physician to Maximilian; and his father, Andries van Wesele (c. 1479-1527), was apothecary to Emperor Maximilian I (the former Archduke) and Emperor Charles V. Frederick granted to Johannes a coat of arms with three weasels. This device is commonly seen in representations of Vesalius.

Vesalius received a Catholic education in Brussels, probably at...