Immortal Bodies

FRANCESCO DE CEGLIA; IRINA PODGORNY

Brill

Lugar: Leiden; Año: 2012 p. 268

For centuries indeed, physicians and naturalists dreamt of a ?perfect library,? able to reveal the secrets of life and the wonders of the world: a col- lection of human and animal bodies and corporeal parts, skillfully prepared and preserved without any alteration, as if they were still alive. It seemed destined to remain just a dream, however. The art of preserving bodies in their natural forms and colors had to address the problem of putrefaction, the processes of which were still a mystery. Hence, it is easy to understand the French anatomist Georges Cuvier, when, in reconstructing the history of natural sciences, he said that one of the circumstances which had con- tributed the most to their advancement was the discovery of alcohol. The struggle against decay had begun, but had not yet been won.