The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp

Kisha Godoy-Science Aspect

The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp
by Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (1632)
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Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn
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The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp is an oil painting made in 1632 by   Dutch painter Rembrant van Rijn. The piece is currently housed in the Mauritshuis Museum in The Hague of the Netherlands.(1) Rembrandt created this group portrait after being commissioned by the Amsterdam of Guild Surgeons. The Portrait depicts Dr. Nicolaes Tulp to celebrate his second public anatomy demonstration, performed in Amsterdam on January 31, 1632" (330).

Dr. Nicolaes Tulp
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Nicolaes Tulp was born on October 9, 1593. His career as a doctor and politician made him a man of influence and because of his connections on the city council, he became the Praelector Anatomiae, head professor at the Amsterdam Guild of Surgeons. At that time the dissection of bodies was only legal if the subject was a male criminal and considered outside of the Church. The dissections were performed with the consent of the city council, and all council and guild members were required to attend and pay an admission fee (2).

During the middle ages, medicine experience was very limited due to the fact that many did not understand the anatomy of the human body. The Catholic church was opposed to the dissection of cadavers during that time, however Vesalius wrote in his book De Humani Corporis Fabrica, that human anatomy is learned from actual dissections of cadavers and will later become the norm in medical faculties. This development will lead to great medical and all surgical advances in the future.(3)

"By understanding the  human body, the Dutch believed, one could come to understand God" and his creation: man (330). Dissections are usually rare, but in the Baroque period dissections occur once a year in the winter, where the body is less likely to swell up and stink. These sessions are shown to the public at a charged fee. Physicians  surgeons, men, and women come to witness these intellectual procedures from all over Europe. The corpse that is operated on had to be a male criminal and in this image his name is Aris Kindt, who was convicted of armed robbery and sentenced to death by hanging. It would be another 100 years before the surgeons were allowed to dissect a female cadaver.  Dr. Tulp then explains how the body and muscles work by demonstrating for example in this image, the effect on the fingers caused by the very tendons he grips with the forceps in his right hand."It is the manual dexterity enabled by these muscles that physically distinguishes man from beast" (330).  Even though he was the head professor, he did not deal with the actual surgical procedures, someone else was there opening and cutting the corpse. (4)

This work of art was influence by the expansion of scientific knowledge and the middle-class of the Baroque Era. The demand for more knowledge as it is expressed greatly in this image shows how that time period was interested in science by learning the anatomy and physiology of a human body. The middle class also played an important role in having this work of art produced because it was the the Amsterdam Guild of Surgeons that commissioned the piece not from royalty. If it wasn't for them, Rembrandt wouldn't have painted this historic image.(5)

Question

What are the two influences that helped produced this oil painting and what are some of the rules for public dissection during the Baroque Era?