The anatomy of painting, or, A short and easy introduction to anatomy : being a new edition, on a smaller scale, of six tables of Albinus, with their linear figures : also, a new translation of Albinus's history of that work, and of his index to the six tables : to which are added the anatomy of Celsus, with notes, and the physiology of Cicero : with an introduction, giving a short view of picturesque anatomy
Albinus, Bernhard Siegfried, 1697-1770
.awWw Hapjvfl mt&Sik !4^P! ^Afv£ SriM^dn*hj ... 12 fbtei ! f>)nhs 4 k;.‘ ' Tvist* w» <- 4)1776^ I £t£wv^ ^ tHvfcfA. ?}' $Ufffa* 1 f c^.;\-'' i . • '. w- - THE • ANATOMY or P A I N T I N G: ORA SHORT AND EASY INTRODUCTION TO ANATOMY : BEING A NEW EDITION, ON A SMALLER SCALE, OF SIX TABLES OF AlBISUS, WITH THEIR LINEAR FIGURES: ALSO, A NEW TRANSLATION OF AlBINUs’s HISTORY OF THAT WORK, AND OF HIS INDEX TO THE SIX TABLES TO WHICH ARE ADDED THE ANATOMY OF CELSUS, WITH NOTES, AND THE PHYSIOLOGY OF ClCERO : WITH AN INTRODUCTION, GIVING A SHORT VIEW OF PICTURESQUE ANATOMY. By JOHN BRISBANE, M. .D. SIC ECO NUNC, QUONIAM H«C RATIO F1ERU.M Q_U E VIDETUR TRISTIOR ESSE, QUIBUS NON EST TRACTATA, RETRO QU E VOLGUS ABHORRET AB HAC: VOLUI TIBI S U A V I LO QU E N TI CARMINE PIERIO RATIONEM EXPONERE NOSTRAM, ET QUASI MUSEO DULCI CONTINGERE MELEE, SI TIBI FORTE ANIMUM TALI RATIONE TENERE VERSIBUS IN NO ST R I S POSSEM, DUM PERSPICIS OMNEM NATURAM RERUM, QUA CONSTET COMPTA FIGURA. Lucret. LONDON: Printed by George Scott, And sold by T. Cadell bookseller, successor to Mr. Millar, in the Strand M DCC LXIX. THE GENERAL PREFACE. IT is doing fervice to mankind, to extend the knowledge of any ufeful art, and to render it more eafy and delightful. Many M ould incline to have fomc knowledge of the ftructure of the human frame, who cannot bear dead bodies, and actual diflection, and who cannot relifh the common dry and tedious method of treating anatomy. Diffedtions of the human body, in fthools of anatomy, are by far too frequent, and often to very little purpofe ; on the contrary, it would be an eafy mat¬ ter to teach the mod ufeful part of anatomy, by models and figures alone, properly explained ; Purely fo far as to fiitisfy e- very one, except thole who lludied it as a preparation for the practice of phyfic and furgery ; and even in that cafe, anatomy might be taught in a much lliorter and more agreeable man¬ ner than is commonly done. Many writers upon arts and Ici- ences, and particularly on anatomy, feem to have no juft idea of the nature and utility el figures, and moft anatomifts confine that art, almoft entirely, to the purpofes of phyfic and fiirgery ; whereas it is neceflary in a particular manner, to thofe who ftu- dy and piactife the arts ut .UcL— i, ^ nnd ought to be taught and wrote upon vv-ith that view, by men fkilful in thefe arts. por tho’ phyficians and fiirgeons have, for a long time, in a manner engrafted the whole bufinefi of teaching anatomy; yet painters ftatuaries, and engravers, Ihould affert their rights, and teach, and write upon this fcience, in a picturefque manner, fuited to their own art ; in which it is as immediately and eflentially ufeful, as even in phyfic or furgery ; for no one can poflibly treat of anatomy for the ufe of painters, fo as to fatisfy and be agreeable to true judges and lovers of the arts of defign, unlefs he himfelf is iltilled in thefe arts, and in the true application of anatomy to painting. Let none however imagine, becaufe from experience of their great utility, 1 fo much recommend models and figures, as a good introduction to anatomy, that I a do 4h' i I t ;• i do not fee the ufe and necefiity of adhxal diffection, to thofe who would be complete matters of this feience ; and efpecially in the art of medicine, in order to difeover the feats and caufes of difeafes. L v ] Vefalius, phyfician to the emperor Charles V. the great reflor- er of anatomy and furgery among the moderns, in his immor¬ tal work bn the fabrick of the human body, gave admirable fi¬ gures of the bones and mufcles, cfpecially the external orders: he lived at a time, when painting flourilhed in Italy to a very high degree ; and many of his figures, not only give the greateft delight and inftrudtion to an anatomift, but allb to a painter. His great rival Euftachius purlued a different plan, more accu¬ rate in anatomical truth, diligent in the liiglieft degree, learn¬ ed and ingenious; but without the noble fire, and manly free¬ dom of Vefalius. The figures of Euftachius are the molt valu¬ able part of his remains, and, tho’ as to the painter’s art Am¬ ple and unadorned, are mofl clear and inftructivc to an anato¬ mift, and executed with great judgment ; fo that even in om- days, they are held in the higheft efteern ; and indeed neither the particulars they contain (and they may be laid to contain ahnoft an entire fyftem of the anatomy that was then known) nor the fkilful manner in which they were conitructcd, were underftood, till pointed out and explained by the great Albi- ntts ; who, together with the utmofl judgment and accuracy, has added true elegance to every part of anatomy, but in a particular manner to anatomical figures, and has even in a manner accomodated them to the art of painting. And if I may judge from the labour it coft me, to follow hlo footfteps, in an exatl copy of forne part of his works, the labours he him- felf has undergone, mull have exhaufted the utmoft extent of human patience ; efpecially in one fo eminent for elegance of genius, a character generally fo impatient of tedious and labo¬ rious purfuits. The fix tables of Albinus, which are now publifhed in a final- ler form, tho’ they may ferve as an introduction to anatomy, and as an ornament to hang up in the ftudies of fuch as love that fcience, are chiefly intended for the ufe of thofe, who pur- fue the arts of clefign, in order to awaken their attention to this part of their profeflion, and as a fpecimen to form the tafte of youth, C Vi ] youth, early, to a love of elegance in anatomy, anti to blow them how milch lliorter, more ealy, and agreeable it is, to be introduced to that fcience by means of figures, than by tedious lyftems, and lectures upon dead bodies alone. The work was alio undertaken for the amufement of the editor at his leifiire hours, who is a profefled lover of anatomy, and of the arts of defigri. It was likewife undertaken from a veneration of the great Albinus, in order Hill further to Ipread the knowledge of his admirable works, fo juftly defer ving to be known ; but particularly to recommend the regular ule of figures in ana¬ tomy, and the true manner of applying that fcience to the ufes of the arts of defign. The fmaller form was cliofen, to make the tables more portable, more fit for ftudy, and at the fame time to come at a lower price. Tho’ fin all, they are of fitch a fizc as to contain, in the dillinctefi manner, whatever is ex- prefi’ed in the large originals from which they were copied, feme entirely, and others partly with my own hand ; and en¬ graved, under my own eye and conftant direction, by a young engraver, who I hope will one day be eminent in his profefe lion. No time or expence was Ip axed to give them all the per¬ fection, that copies of luch inimitable originals are capable of. The back grounds were omitted, not only to lave labour and expence, but as tables of fo ftnall a form did not fo much re¬ quire theft: ornaments; and by want of them, the figures feern- cd to appear with more diftinctnels and perfpicuity, and to be fitter for the ufe of fcience. To the outlines or linear figures, on account of the fize, I was obliged to add figures of parti¬ cular parts as large as the originals ; otherwife I could not have found room for the letters or marks of reference ; this I hope will be thought a good contrivance, and will not be inconvenient to the reader, the feparate parts being placed all around, near the correlponding members of the entire figure, and as it were in the feme attitude and direction, fo that the eye palfes eafily from the one to the other ; and what let¬ ters are not found on the entire figure, mult always be looked for on the feparate correlponding parts. And it is hoped that very [ vii ] very few errors will be found, even in the linear tables, and letters or marks upon them, which were examined with the fame attention as every other part of the work ; and indeed, in my care of printing the tables, choice of the workmen, and of the paper, and in every other particular, I followed, as nearly as I was able, the excellent method purltied and defcribed by Albinus bimfelf. "file tranflation, both of the general preface of Albinus, con¬ taining the liiltory of the work, and alio of his explication of the tables, is entirely new ; in which I have not only endea¬ voured to exprefs the fenfe, but alfo the graces of Albinus ; and in the index, or explication of the tables, his elegant brevity. I had too much pleaffire in endeavouring to imitate that threat anatomifl, and to try to exprefs the beauty and elegance of his manner, to weary of the laborious talk of tranflating him anew ; efpecially as the former Englifli tranflator, befides miffing almoft every where the character and elegance of the author, is erroneous in many places, and in lome pages of the liiltory of the work hardly to be underflood ; chiefly becaufe the tranflator feems not to feel the beau¬ ty of the Original, and to be totally ignorant of the pain¬ ter’s art, fbme knowledge of which is 16 neceffioy to one th?r undertakes a work of this kind. I have taken the liberty to divide Albinus’s liiltory of the work into chapters and lections, and alfo have added an epitome of it; for tho’ nothinsr can be more methodical, and more worthy the ftudy both of painters and anatomifts, than that hiftory, in order to judge of the merit and defects of anatomical figures, and in what man¬ ner they ought to be conftructed ; yet as the nature of the iiib- ject, and the minutenefs of the author, require an attentive reader, I thought tliefe fmaller helps, by rendering every thing more clear and cafv, might be ufeful to young painters and ana¬ tomifts. I confefi however, notwithftanding all the pains I have beftowed, that my copies, both of the tables and of the words of Albinus, are many degrees inferior to the originals ; but I flatter k myfelf inyfelf they are lels unworthy of them, than foine former at* tempts ; tho’ perhaps others may difcover errors and defects in my tranflation and copies, that I myfelf am inlenfible of. Such errors I fliall ever he ready to own and to correct ; and I fhall proceed to give the remaining mulcular tables of Albinus, fo as to complete the work ; likewile other anatomical tables and treatiles, according as I find tliev w ill be agreeable to the public. As an ornament to this little work, I have added the anatomy of Celfits, to lerve for a Ipecimen of that fine author ; with in* tendon to fliow, in how fltort a compafs lo important and difficult a (abject as anatomy may be treated, in a clear and elegant manner ; if my tranllation of this part of Celfus is ap* proved, I fliall afterwards exhibit other parts of that accom* plifhed author in an Englifli drels. 1 have likewile added a tranflation of the anatomy and phyfiology of Cicero ; in order, if poffible, by fo bright an example, to recommend the ftudy of ufeful and elegant learning, to the great of our own age and country, and thereby revive the manners of greater and more virtuous times. Laftly, 1 have ventured to premile a fliort introduction to anatomy, in a manner fuited to the ufe of the lovers and practilers of the arts of defign ; and as the attempt is fomewliat new, 1 hope its faults and imperfections, with the others found in this work, w ill meet w ith the favour and indulgence of learned and candid judges. Great Titchfifld-Street, January i. mdcclxix. INTRODUCTION TO THE TABLES GIVING A SHORT VIEW OF PICTURESQUE ANATOMY. A N A T O M Y, like many other parts of learning, has often been defcribed with too much minutenels, fo as to make it tedious and difagreeable, even to the lovers of that art. Great judgment and Ikill are required to rejeCt the ufelefs, and to retain, arrange, and adorn the ufeful parts of fcience, and apply them to practice, fo as to be agreeable to men of genius, and fit. for the generality of mankind, leaving the minute and lefs ufeful things to the ftudy of the curious. In this method of treating every fubjedt, the works of the ancients afford the moft admirable models, while the bulk of modern fyftems, tho’ rich in matter, too often confound us with a load of ill digefted particulars, heaped together without tafte or judgment, and defcribed without perfpicuity or elegance. A great reformation in this is therefore much required, and on no fubject more than ana¬ tomy-, fo that notwithstanding the many large fyftems and abridgments already publifhed, a fhort and elegant fyftem of anatomy is ftill greatly wanted, fitted for general ufe, and for men of liberal education, and particularly for the pradtifers and lovers of the arts of defign : and indeed it would appear, that a method chiefly by good figures and explications, would belt of all anfwer that pur- pofe : for what more natural, fhort, and agreeable way can be devifed, to explain the mechanical ftrudlure of any machine, than by prefenting it to the eye in a feries of proper figures ? nor could the fabrick of the human body be fooner or more agreeably learned, or deeper fixed in the memory, than by copying the beft anatomical figures, and indeed many other parts of knowledge might be fooner and more agreeably taught by the afliftance of drawing, than by any other method ; for which reafon, drawing ought to be an univerfal piece of education, and conftantly taught along with writing, which is only a fpecies of it. I According { [ X ] According to the views that thefe have who apply to the fludy of anatomy, their attention mui be applied to different things, and in a different manner. Thus, according to the prefent fyflem o medical education, a phyfician muff ftudy anatomy on an extenfive plan, and with very enlarge* v.ews, fo as to underftand not only the larger parts, and grofs mechanifm of the animal, but M to penetrate into its mod intimate ftrufture, fo as to difeover, if poffible, the mod minute veffels cells, pores and fibres, upon which the various funftions of the animal depend, and which are thi feats of particular difeafes, or by means of which, remedies may be applied to the whole body, 01 its particular parts : nor mud he underdand the folids only, but alfo the fluid parts, which nou’rid the former, and are themfelves the feats of difeafes, and aft upon the folids fometimes as poifons; and fometimes as remedies ; nor ought the finer parts by which the body is governed, and even the mind itfelf, fo far as it afts upon and is conneSed with the body, to be lefs the fubjeft of medical fludy than the body itfelf; otherwife, a phyfician mud have very imperfeft ideas of his profeffion, and of the animal machine, and often fail in his cures, becaufe many difeafes are wholly, or partly cured by the movements of the mind, or by applying the remedy firff to the mind, and thereby producing the withed for effeft upon the body. And in like manner, the whole extent of nature, in fo far as it can any way influence or affedl the animal machine, either to injure or reffore it, is alfo the true and neceffary fubjeft of medical fludy ; from all which may be feen, the importance of the medical profeffion, and the great extent and difficulty of it, efpecially as fo much judgment, honour, humanity, and induflry, are conftantly required in the praftice of it ; otherwife, opportu¬ nities mud be lod, and the greated mifehief done ; and an art dedined for the fafety and’proteftion of mankind, be converted into the greated curfe to fociety. But to return to anatomy. A furgeon on the other hand, tho’ he ought to have at lead a general idea of the animal ceco. nomy, and indeed of every part of medicine, yet his chief anatomical dudy fhould be confined to know exactly the bones, with their joints, and the mufcles, together with the large blood veffels and nerves, and the fituations and mechanical druflure of thefe parts, which are to be the fubjeft ° ’. or ought to be fhunned in performing operations, or are the feats of chirurgical difeafes, or to which external remedies are moft properly applied. But a painter or a I— or the arts of defign, mud fludy anatomy with other views. As th reprefentation of the outf.de or furface of the human body, is the chief object of his art, h ought to ftudy the ftrufture of the body and its inward parts, chiefly for the fake of or as the affea or are referred to the external furface, and make their appearance there, or ’are afiiftan m the better drawing and reprefentation of it. Hence the parts which (how themfelves upon or affea the furface of the body, ought to be the foie or chief objed of the ftudy of a painter The parts therefore that he neared to the furface or outfide of the body, and confequendy thai are mod immediately concerned ,n forming its outline, are fird to be confidered by a painter vrf the external layer of mufcles, efpecially the larger ones, and thefe that] are mod fleS to appear m the movements and attitudes of the body : as to the fldn and fat under it thefe are uniformly fpread over the whole body, and are to be confldered merely as a drapery ’or cover¬ ing to the more inward parts, which appear every where more or lefs thro’ them at fome times and places in a dronger, and at others in an obfeurer manner. But tho’ the parts neared to the furface, ate the fird and mod obvious that belong to the dudy of a painter, yet nature has fo contrived the human body, that the external parts cannot be well underdood, without a jud idea of the internal ones, even of thofe which are as it were buried in the center of the body : I mean [ ] I mein the bones, or Ikeleton, which are the foundation and frame on which the whole fabrick is built, and to which, as abafis, all the other parts are mediately or immediately referred, particularly the mufcles, fo neceffary to be known by painters, which are chiefly inferted into the bones, and make confiderable marks and imprelflons upon them ; and confequently, without the knowledge of the bones, the mufcles and other foft parts cannot be underftood : but there is another reafon why the bones mull be ftudied by a painter, viz. becaule parts of the bones, tho covered by the integu¬ ments, appear not oblcurely to the eye in many places of the body, and like the large mufcles, are there the caufe of the outline, and of the charafter, proportion, beauty, and appearance of many parts ; and when properly confidered and underftood, the bones, by fo many fixed points, give the fineft direftion to a painter, not only how to find and place the mufcles, but alfo how to draw the human body ; nor can it be fo juftly or readily drawn by any painter, as by one that un- derftands anatomy in a mafterly manner, and particularly the bones and external mufcles, and can point them all out upon a living man, and by means of that knowledge, determines all his points, and the forms and proportions of every part and member, adding one part to another as he knows they lie upon the body : this is the true and natural method of drawing the human figure, and is a much eafier and compleater way, to one that underftands anatomy, than any artificial or mechanical method by fquares, or by dividing the body into fo many heads, or by trufting merely to praftice and memory, or a fcrvile imitation of any mailer. But tho’ the bones and external mufcles are the moll neceffary part of the anatomical ftudy of a painter, yet it mud be confeffed, that at leafc a general knowledge of the whole fabrick is of great ufe, in order to a more complete and mafterly reprefentation of the human body, and in order to be able to diverfify, and give a reafon for every appearance ; and not only the folids mull be known by a painter, but he ought likewife to have fome idea of the fluids, as on thefe chiefly depend the various tints and colours of the (kin, that appear in the different fexes and ages of life, in different charafters and occafions, climates and nations, even to that of the Blacks or ^Ethiopians. A lover of the arts of defign, or indeed any anatomift of true tafle, will look upon the human body and all its parts with the eye of a painter, otherwife, he will fee and deferibe it in an ignorant and ruftic manner : this pifturefque turn we obferve in few modern anatomifts, but rather a great ianorance of it, the generality feldom rifing above mechanical ideas, and many of them have even been ignorant of geometry, and every polite and liberal fcience, though abfolutely neceffary to a true knowledge of anatomy. Obferving the human body with the eye of a painter, enables us c to } to fee it in ail its beauty and perfeftion, and raifes in our minds a thoufand ideas of the ufes and propnety o the feverai parts, whereof one ignorant of painting will be totally infenfible : and in defcninng the human body upon this plan, we naturally do it in the moft clear, tort and acree able manner far different from the dull pedantic defctiptions and tedious trifling of vulgar anato- nults. It,s from bad habits alone, and mere want of genius, that any noble fcience, or any def cription of nature can become tedious or difagreeble, or be born and relitod by the hearers • hence the works of the ancients, and of thofe who follow their footdeps, are read and feen with delight and adm.rat.on, wh.le we are apt to fall alleep over the works of many accurate and la¬ borious modern writers, and wonder how men can be fo blind and infenfible to true beauty when nature and fuch admirable models are conftantly before their eyes. Having premired theft few obfervations, I might remit the reader to the tables themfelves with their explication ; by the careful perufal of which, a tolerable idea may be formed of the Ikeleton and external mufcles, at leaft, for the ufes of painting, but the young anatomift and painter will perhaps better underftand them, and with more eafe and pleafure, and be able more fully to conneft the particulars, and apply them to the arts of def, gn, by means of the following tort etch of pi&orefque anatomy, which, m its turn, will alfo be better underftood by confulting all along the tables and the explication, this introduffion and the tables mutually tending to ex plain and llluftrate each other. ° j n c. IV X, L, i u i\. The fyftem of the bones or Ikeleton, is as it were the folid frame that contains, defends, and gives ftability to the fofter parts, and to which they are ultimately attached; and confequently this bonv fabrick has of itfelt the general form, fize, and appearance of the entire body (Tab. I. II. III.). This folid frame is moft artfully compofed of different parts jointed one to anodier, fo as to be capable of every ufeful and graceful motion, in the whole and in all its parts ; and the various bones and pieces ofwhichitis compofed, differ in fize, form and ftrength, in pofition, connexions and motionf ac cording to the ufes and exigencies, and even the beauty of every part, to which they often add a certain grace and charafter. hy oWi„„-Iy appearing here and there throueh the to even in the living body. The head, which the painters conf.der as an oval ( Tab I n m , ? ’ it were, the dome or cupola to the whole edifice. In this higheft part the fenfcs are placed "i d the brain defended by folid bone ; the head, like the reft of the body, derives its fize for ’ portions, and principal charafters firrt from the bones, but the foft parts that cover tom Zj the life, the motions, and the finilhing beauty, in which Iaft, the hair alfo concurs ; and it i f pnfing how fo few Ample organs, and fo thin a covering of foft parts, are capable offish infinite Z riety of forms and expreffions as we fee in the human countenance, affording an endlefs field of ftudy. In the head the bony part is a more complete fabrick, and comes nearer to the form J T entire body than in any o tor part of the Ikeleton ; and being the feat of fo many nobft “d the chief part to be ftudied by a painter, it deferves the firft place, according to the common cuf tom of anatomifts. Here veftiges of the fmooth policed bone fhew themfelves on the forehead in the tilings all around the eye, in the hollow of the temples, on the nofe and cheek bones and’ margin of the lower jaw giving great pleafure to a painter that underftands anatomy Next comes the elegantly bent pillar of the fpine, (Tab. III.) ftrong, yet flexible, b Q parts firmly tied together. This bony column, at the fame time, gives fize, ftreng and motion to the body, attachment to many furrounding parts, and being hollow through fts ^o C *iii ] length, ferves to condu6t and fecure the fpinal marrow, and to tranfmit nerves to every part of the trunk and extremities. The fpine confifts of four and twenty vertebras, (Tab. I. II. III.) generally increafing in fize as they defcend, and gradually varying in their figure : feven of thefe vertebras belong to the neck, which admit of peculiar and confiderable motions, and allow of many graceful movements to the head and neck. The next twelve belong to the back, thefe are almoft rigid, and admit of veiy little motion •, to thefe, as to a folid bafts, the twelve ribs of each fide are attached, which toge¬ ther with the fternum, and their own cartilages, form a kind of yielding cage or balket, to contain, the heart and lungs, (Tab. I. II. III.). This bony cage admits of a fmall motion when we breath ; and to the lower margin of it all around, is fixed the diaphragm, a tranfverfe mufcular partition, dividing the thorax from the abdomen, a main organ of refpiration and of other functions. The five lower vertebra; belong to the loins, and admit of confiderable motion, of great ufe in the firm and graceful attitudes and flexions of the trunk, and in many offices of common life. Between the ribs and pelvis there is a great void in the fkeleton, efpecially before, (Tab. III.). In this fpace lie many of the abdominal vifeera, with the parts that contain and cover them, making on the forepart the beautiful fwell of the abdomen, elegantly marked by the containing parts (Tab. IV.). To the fupe- rior part of the thorax, by means of the tranfverfe clavicles and of large and ftrong mufcles, are ap¬ pended the upper extremities, which at the fhoulders give breadth to the thorax above, and ferve many noble purpofes of flrength, of art, of defence, of exprellion, and of beauty. We come now to the'pelvis and lower extremities. The pelvis fupports and defends the lower vif¬ eera. The back part or os facrum (with its coccyx) of a triangular form, is at it were the bafis and continuation of the fpine, whofe vertebra; it obfeurely refembles, and performs its offices, by re¬ ceiving the extremity of the fpinal marrow, and tranfmitting nerves to the lurrounding parts. The lateral and foreparts of the pelvis, though fixed and immoveable, anfwer in fome refpeft to the fcapula; and clavicles, as they afford lockets for the thigh bones, and alfo a feat to many ftrong mufcles that belong to the trunk and extremities. The upper margins of the offa ilium appear gracefully in the living body on the forepart, and form a kind of boundary between the belly and the thighs. The fpines of the os facrum, as of the vertebra;, obfeurely appear in bodies not loaded with fat, as alfo the great trochanter of the thigh, the reft of which bone, till you come to the [ xiv ] the knee, is deeply immerfed among large and ftrong mufdes : but at the knee, the bones make a very fine appearance, viz, the condyles of the thigh bone, the tops of the tibia and fibula, and the round patella, (Tab. I. II.) a bone fo beautiful and fo ufeful in the government and defence of this joint. Here fkilful painters and fculptorf- never fail to Ihew their art, not only in the entirely naked figure, but in fome ancient roman habits, in which this beautiful joint appears, and indeed the ancient dreffes, and even fome of the gothic ones, greatly excel the modern, as they not only cloath, but adorn the human body, fhewing its feveral parts to advantage, and giving a noble field to painters and fculptors, who, when they want to add dignity and beauty to their figures, are obliged to borrow from the dreffes of the ancients, as we do from their languages, architedture, and the other arts of antiquity. The bone of the tibia appears through the whole length of the leg, and at the lower part of the tibia and fibula, the two ankles elegantly appear, and fix the bounds between the leg and foot. The various conformation of certain parts, chiefly at the extremity of bones, is the principal caufe of all the variety of the joints ; which are compleated by means of ligaments that bind them together, and of fmooth cartilages, and a certain lubricating moilture to enable the articulated parts to Hide quickly, fmoothly, and gently upon each other. By means of the joints, the human body becomes a moving fabrick, a thing neceffary in the common offices and arts of life, alfo for health, defence, and amufement. By the joints, mod of which fo elegantly appear to the eye, the body is not only fubdivided into a multitude of well pro¬ portioned parts and members, compofing one harmonious whole, beautiful to the eye, but is thereby capable of an infinite variety of ufeful, expreffive, and graceful attitudes and motions ; and though every joint has its peculiar ufe and extent of mobility, determined by the nature and confor¬ mation of the parts that compofe it ; yet the joints, as we Ihall fee afterwards of the mufcles, feldom aft feparately and alone, but like thefe, beautifully co operate one with another, in all the princi¬ pal attitudes and movements of the body ; fo that in many pofitions , almoft all the joints, as well as principal* mufcles, are more or lefs concerned, and aft in harmony one wiiti another, havinn each a certain fhare in thefe ufeful and beautiful movements. But a particular defeription of the diffe rent joints, with fuch obfervations on them as properly belong to the painter’s art, thouo-h a moll curious and ufeful part of anatomy, would be too tedious for a Ihort introduflion of this kind Though there are only male and adult fkeletons reprefented in thefe figures, we may obferve, that the difference of fexes and of ages is feen even in the (keleton, as well as in the entire body; not to mention the difference of ftature, and of the fize, ftrength and form of particular bones, even to the fingers, the different proportion of the Ihoulders and pelvis in the two fexes is remarkable. The large globol'e head, the round face, the (hortened trunk and extremities, the bones thick, foft and [ XV ] and almoft every where imperfeft, the proceffes, protuberances, and marks or impreffions, left evident, and the bones confining of many parts and diviiions, which are afterwards united in the hard and perfedt bones of adults. But the differences of age and fex are not the only ones we can perceive upon the Ikeleton-, a fkilful perron can eafily diftinguilh the ikeleton of a well made delicate body from that of one of a more rude or homely make, and all the different degrees of deformity : we may with Vefalius diftinguilh the ikulls of different nations ; and in like manner, by a more nice and accurate attention, we may go a great way to obferve almoft every charafter and diftinftion, that is perceivable in the entire man ; for the impreffions of early habits, which from the mind, or from other quarters, affeft the general appearance of the entire body, generally communicate themfelves even to the bones, which being long in a foft and growing ftate, are evidently fufceptible of changes and impreffions of many kinds, from the nature and adtion of the furrounding parts. So much for the bones andtheir joints, in fo far as may fuffice to give a faint idea of thefe parts for the ufes of painting and fculpture, and to ferve the lovers of thefe arts as an intrcduftion to the explication of the following tables. We now proceed to give a like idea of the mufcles. OF THE MUSCLES. The Ikeleton is one fimple fyftem of folid patts, feen as it were at one view, and ferving as a jointed frame on which to build the reft of the body. But the mufcular or flelhy parts, that cloath and move the Ikeleton, are foft, and form a more various and complicated fyftem, confifting of dif¬ ferent ftata or layers, one covering another, and divided into numerous portions of different flze and fio-ure, regularly difpofed over the whole body, compofing a great part of its bulk, and the chief caufe of the fize and form of the members ; for when ftript of its uniform coverings, viz. the fkin and cellular or fatty membrane, the external mufcular figure nearly refembles that of the entire body. The mufcles differ greatly in their fize, figure, and other particulars, according to the parts where they are fituated, and the ufes to which they are applied. But in general they are compofed of fibers- the middle part or belly being large, foft and red, ana ul«. ««n,mes or tendons, which are generally inlerted in bones, being fmaller and harder, white and Ihining ; the red part is pro¬ perly the moving power, and ads by contraflion, during which it fwells, becomes hard and ffiorter, fometimes to a great degree, and thereby pulls the parts to which its extremities are affixed. The mufcles are governed by the power of the will, except the fibers of the heart and of the inteftines, which of all°others are moft irritable ; the mufcles of refpiration aft in both ways. The mufcles can aft in the moft gentle and delicate manner, and alfo with great ftrength and velocity, though much of their power is loft, by the places and manner in which they are often fituated and inferred on the parts to be moved. The caufes of mufcular motion, are difficult to be accounted for from the known ftruSure of mufcles -, great velocity communicated to the nervous fluid by the mind, fo as to ftimulate the fibrils, feems the moft probable account. The mufcles are arranged in their places, and allowed to Hide upon each other, by means of the cellular or fatty membrane, and their fibres are lubricated every where by the oil it contains ; and in the fabnek of the body, and of the mufcles themfelves, many contrivances are ufed to affift their aftions. The mufcles are in fufficient number, and fo difpofed and contrived, as to be a warm covering and defence to the more inward parts, as well as to move the joints in all the direflions they are capable of, to affift in many d functions L XV1 J funftions of the body, and to place and retain it in every poffible attitude ; in doing which, the particular mufcles feldom aft alone, but in the mod: various manner co-operate with or oppofe each other : lb that the whole mufcular fyflem may be confidered as one mufcle, every fibre bein°- entirely under the power of the will, at the pleafure of which, the whole body and all its parts are at once or alternately moved and governed, as it were by fo many bridles. Befides this grand purpofe of the mufcles, they l.kew.fe ferve the general ufes of the animal machine, being the chief caufe of refpiration, and of the circulation of the blood and juices, alfo promoting digeftion, abforption ecret’on excretion, nutrition and growth ; hence they likewife prevent and cure obftruftions and other thfeafes, and by their inceflant aftion are one great caufe of the hardening and waftinv of the body, and the decays of old age. ° 1 his is a general idea of the mufcular fyftem ; but a painter mud Ihidy it with particular views to hts own art. He mud confider, that the mufcles chiefly form the five and outline of the body; that many of the external mufcles have regular forms, and beautifully appear at all times under the (kin, but efpecially when in violent aftion j that in that cafe, even deep feated mufcles fomeumes appear, as alfo more clearly the bones and other parts , that the different parts of the Ikeleton bearing obliquely upon each other, and upon the feet or common bafe, even in the mod Ample attitudes, many mufcle, am therefore condantly in aftion, fuccelfively relievino- furflce of'thebrdCrt° PrferVethe;£qUilibriUm’ Cha"ging thdr “0 prances on the face of body, as the various podures, attitudes, or exertions require. Thefe appearances he ought diligently to obferve, even in different bodies, and compare them with his knowledge of anatomy, ,n order to apply them judly on proper occafions to adorn his figures. In this the an¬ cient amds far excelled the moderns; and indeed, not to mention their other advantages, they had better opportunities of obferving the naked body in the gymnafia, when employed in the manly exercilesofthepatedra. But why are not thefe inditutions revived along with the other noble difcipline of antiquity, founded on nature and reafon, and aiming at the perfeftion of the human kind. It this were done upon a proper plan, as our lights and opportunities are fuperior to theirs we might in time not only equal, but even excel them. Is it not the difgrace of a nation that fo much dud.es and admires, and above all others refembles the antients, and feems fond to rival them, to be fo long funk i. partial, and felfilh ideas, thar retard its glory and progrefs to true greatneis. Not only men of genius, but the people in general W fo, aic JL f this defirable event, and wait only for leaders worthy of them. The ancients were perfeft m ft " in applying anatomy to the arts of defign, they not only knew the general form and places of th mufcles, but how to vary their appearance in every degree of aftion and of charafter Tl cles of a Hercules, for example, differ from thefe of an Apollo, and of an Apollo from Thefcof a Venus, in the fame charafter and ftile as the figures themfelves : the mufcles of tl • gladiator feem to die along with him, and in the fighting one, and the wreftlers they are Lul'd like the figures themfelves, and the parts to which they belong. In the Laocoon they feem to be convulfed and trembling. Many more oblervations might be made, with regard to the general fyltem and anatomy of the bones and mufcles, and other parts of the human body, with the application thereof to the arts of defio-n, did the bounds preferibed to this flrort introduftory (ketch allow of it. Referving thefe therefore for fome other occafion, we (hall conclude what we have to fay of the mufcles, with a flrort view of the external layers, as they appear in the three mufcular tables now publilhed; con¬ fining ourfelves chiefly to the ufe of painters and fculptors. In order to underftand thefe figures aright, the three mufcular tables muft beconfidered and com¬ pared together. as one, under the idea of a folid figure, , which can be turned round and prefented to the eye in different views ; efpecially the front and back, which are in the fame attitude, and contain in themfelves the entire round of the body. And in the like manner may be compared the three views of the fkeleton. This being done with care and attention, each (keleton mult be compared with its cor- refponding mufcular figures and both the one and the other, with the entire living body placed in the fame attitude 5 by which a tolerable knowledge will be acquired of the anatomy of the human body, in fo far as it belongs to the arts of defign. Though much might be faid for the ufe of painters, not only on thfc different ftrata or layers of mufcles, but alfo upon particular mufcles s yet at prefent we (hall confine ourfelves chiefly to the external layers that appear in thefe tables, and which lie immediately under the fkin and cellular membrane, and retain fo much the entire figure or outline of the body, that painters generally in- feribe thefe mufcles upon that outline as a bafis. However, as fome deep feated mufcles on- fome oc- cafions more or lefs appear, at lead by their cSV.ru, , p,rtr„ilarly, the diaphragm that as an antagq- nift fuftains the beautiful fwell of the abdomen, and the mufcles that fupport the trunk and govern the fpine, alfo the mufcles concealed in the orbits of the eyes, fo ufcful in expreffing the paffions and movements of the foul s I (hall only juft mention that fuch mufcles exift, and ought to be known by painters, though they do not appear in thefe tables. But as to the layers or ftrata of mufcles, and particularly the external one, we may obferve in general, that though they might have effeflually ferved the purpofes of moving powers, and indeed all the other ufes of mufcles, by being formed of lefs regular figures, and placed on the body with lefs exaft order and compofidon ; yet nature, confulting grace and beauty as well as utility in all her works, has fo contrived the mufcular fyftem, that while It effeftually performs its feveral funflions, not only the particular mufcles are formed with great variety, into beautiful and regular figures, of a fize and appearance fijited and propor¬ tioned to the feveral parts, but the whole together is fo difpofed, as to exhibit an agreeable compofi- tion to a lover of anatomy ; and they are fo placed and fecured, that in their moil violent adtions, they cannot ftart up fo far from their true places, as to hurt or deface the form of the body or of its feveral parts; but rather by their gentle fwellings and depreffions, tend to encreafe its beauty; and to gain this end, nature has made a great wafte of mufcular ftrength. Of the different ftrata of muf- clcs. xviii ] cles, the external one reprefented in thefe figures is more beautiful than the hidden and inter¬ nal ones, becaufe it confifts of larger and more regular maffes than the internal ftrata, and as the whole comes nearer to the form of the entire body. Again, of the three external views that of the front is moll beautiful, not only on account of the face, and becaufe the limits of the trunk are more exafily determined both above and below, and as the extremities feem more to be¬ long to the foreparts, and are there more beautiful ; but alfo, becaufe in the front there is more variety and elegance in the mufcular appearances. The back view, though in fome refpeft more rude and Am¬ ple, likewife has its beauty, efpecially about the neck and fhoulders ; alfo about the hips and the whole lower extremities, whofe bones and mufcles are larger and ftronger than thefe of the fuperior, fuited to the fize and office of the parts. The profile or fide view, both in the fkeleton and mufcular figure (hews many particulars that cannot be fo well perceived in the others ; for example, the direftion and bearing of the parts one upon another, and how far they projeft both before and behind ; as the head over the neck, the various curvatures of the fpine, and fo of other parts ; it alfo fhews fome parts more fully, and others in a more pleafing attitude ; and from the profile, you may likewife compare the proportions of the narrow lateral view of the body, to thefe of the front and back. _ In this lateral view, Ihould not the right arm have been more elevated backwards, (fee Tab. III. VI. ) in order to Ihew the internal parts of that arm, as fully in the mufcular figure as they are feen in the (keleton ? By thefe figures we perceive, that the number and ftrength of the mufcles, are every where fuited to the feveral parts they ferve, and the joints they move. Thus the mufcles on the trunk are few, but generally large, broad and flat, ferving for walls and coverings as well as moving powers ; but on the extremities the mufcles are numerous, and moftly oblong, fuited to the fize, form and aftion of thefe parts, and the many joints to be moved. About the Ihoulders and hips,' the mulcles are Ihort, large, thick and. ftrong, giving the idea of that ftrength necelTary for ftrong and violent aftion, and to command large members that are fo conftantly in motion : whereas about the fingers, which befides the ftrong, are alfo intended for arts and delicate movements, we find many fmaller mufcles ; and ftill more fo on the face, and about the organs of the fenfes and of the voice. Laftly, the deep feared mufcles that command the fpine, run as it were parallel to that bony pillar, and are beautifully fubdivided like the fpine itfelf, fo as equally to govern every part of it. 7 ^ As to the defcription and ufes of the particular mufcles, efpecially of thefe that afford the mod ftrong and beaut, ful appearances, not only in thefe three views, but in every different attitude and aftion of the body, we cannot enter into it in this Ihort introduftion; but the principal things may be underftood by what has been already faid, and by examining thefe, and other good figures and com paring them with nature and the works of the belt artifts: and in cafe this little effay is approved filch particulars, attended with proper figures, may be added on a future occafion. In the mean time we may obferve, that of the mufcles that are feen evidently in thefe figures, the moft remark¬ able are ; on the head : the mufcles of the face that govern the features, the temporal and maffe ter that move the lower jaw ; on the neck: the fternomaftoid of each fide before, covered by the latif fimus colli, that fo beautifully Ihow themfelves in the motions of the head and neck ; on the Ihoul ders: below the clavicles, the pefloral and deltoid; and behind, the large triangular cucullares that chiefly fupport and govern the fcapute, reaching to the head; on the trunk: the abdominal mufcles, and the beautiful indentations of the great ferrati; and behind, the latiffimus dorfi, and ftve- ral mufcles that lie upon the fcapula, viz. on the outfide the bicipites, and internally the femitendinofi, on each fide of which are feen the femi- membranofi, alio the graciles ; the infections of feveral of thefe mufcles aie more diftindly ieen nearthe knee in the profile figure, and by comparing all the figures, we may form an idea of the beautiful articulation of the knee and the other joints, the hollow of the ham and axilla, the various depreflions between the mufcles, the mufcles that bend and extend the fore arm, and compofe the calf of the leg, many mufcles that move the hands and feet, the fingers and toes, with their tendons and ligamentary bands ; laftly, the parts of the bones that make their appearance here and there between all thefe parts. But for tile particular defcription, we (hall at prefent refer to Albinus’s own explication of thefe tables, and other anatomical works. 