The Belgian anatomist Andreas Vesalius (1514- 1564), the founder of modern anatomy. Vesalius was made professor of anatomy and surgery at the age of 24 at the university of Padua, Italy. He lectured in many Italian universities conducting anatomical demonstrations in person. In 1543 Vesalius collected his lectures in a book, De Corporis Humani Fabrica, (On the Structure of the Human Body) which set a completely new level of accuracy in anatomy and made all earlier work outdated. His book, rich in illustrations of the whole body and details of it, represented also a masterpiece of astonishing beauty.