Johann Ulrich Wechtlin: Feldtbuch der Wundtartzney, folio 79 (1517)

(Wellcome Collection, London, UK)

A woodcut made by the German artist Johann Ulrich Wechtlin (1480-1585). This page comes from the book "Feldtbuch der Wundtartzney" (= "Fieldbook of Surgery''), written by Hans von Gersdorff (1455-1529). Hans von Gersdorff was an army surgeon who took part in numerous campaigns. His widely circulated handbook of wound surgery was based on forty years of experience, chiefly in various military campaigns. The book is divided into four parts. The first is a summary of anatomy based on old Arabic authors and the works of the French surgeon Guy de Chauliac (1300-1368). The second part is on surgery, gunshot wounds and amputation. The third part is on leprosy, and the concluding part is a glossary of some 800 samples of plant, animal and mineral origin, and of diseases and anatomical terms. The book is illustrated with various woodscuts which are the best surgical illustrations of the period. This scene shows the amputation of a leg: the patient is sitting in a chair while the surgeon is using a saw to cut of the limb while an assistent holds the leg. The standing man in the background has an amputated hand. Woodcut from 1517.