Model Experts : Wax Anatomies and Enlightenment in Florence and Vienna, 1775-1815

Anna Maerker

ISBN 10: 0719082056 / ISBN 13: 9780719082054

Published by Manchester University Press Apr 2011, 2011

About this Item

Neuware - Based on a detailed study of rich archival sources, Model experts explores practices of model production and display, and reveals the often invisible labours of the co-operating artisans, anatomists, and administrators. The book shows that the models were central to a remarkable political experiment: 'La Specola' opened in 1775 as the Royal Museum of Physics and Natural History, one of the first public science museums in Europe. As a venue for public enlightenment, the museum displayed model anatomies to create the model citizen. The study also moves beyond the borders of Tuscany, following a set of Florentine waxes to Vienna to explore the diverse reactions of medical professionals and general audiences as the models travelled in enlightened Europe. The book will be of interest to historians of medicine, science, art, and enlightenment, to scholars in museum studies and in science & technology studies interested in the historical emergence of expertise, public engagement with science, and the relationship between science and the state.

Seller Inventory # 9780719082054

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Model Experts : Wax Anatomies and Enlightenment in Florence and Vienna, 1775-1815
• Publisher: Manchester University Press Apr 2011
• Publication Date: 2011
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0719082056
• ISBN 13: 9780719082054
• Binding: Buch
• Condition: Neu
• Dimensions: 234W x 157H x 28D millimeters 234 millimeters width by 157 millimeters height by 28 millimeters depth
• Weight: 590 grams

About this title

Synopsis

Based on a detailed study of rich archival sources, Model experts explores practices of model production and display, and reveals the often invisible labours of the co-operating artisans, anatomists, and administrators.

The book shows that the models were central to a remarkable political experiment: 'La Specola' opened in 1775 as the Royal Museum of Physics and Natural History, one of the first public science museums in Europe. As a venue for public enlightenment, the museum displayed model anatomies to create the model citizen. The study also moves beyond the borders of Tuscany, following a set of Florentine waxes to Vienna to explore the diverse reactions of medical professionals and general audiences as the models travelled in enlightened Europe.

The book will be of interest to historians of medicine, science, art, and enlightenment, to scholars in museum studies and in science & technology studies interested in the historical emergence of expertise, public engagement with science, and the relationship between science and the state.

About the Author

Anna Maerker is Senior Lecturer in History of Medicine at Oxford Brookes University