The Body as Alchemical Laboratory (detail), 1738The Body as Alchemical Laboratory
Engraving in Joachim Becher, Physica subterranea (Leipzig, 1738), frontispiece 1386-575.c2
The drapes framing this cosmic body are suggestive of the curtains used in anatomical theaters, where medical students observed master surgeons dissecting the body to unveil the biological secrets of life.
