- Description
- In his anatomical researches on the generation of animals, originally published in Latin in 1651, William Harvey (1658-1657) developed the first fundamentally new theory of generation since antiquity. Harvey's work represented a major advance in the study of animal reproduction, ranking with the works of Fabrizio and Malpighi. Contemporary theories of generation, based on the work of Aristotle and Galen, held that the fetus was formed by the action of semen on menstrual blood, but Harvey argued, based on his studies of developing chick and deer embryos, that all life arose from eggs (ex ovo omnia). This principle was of crucial importance in the history of embryology. Harvey further maintained, contrary to the prevailing belief in preformation, that the fetus developed gradually, a process that he termed "epigenesis."
- Publication date
- 1653..
- Call number
- 657614
- Provenance
- Gift of Dr. W. Bruce and Lois B. Fye, June 2021. Armorial bookplate of Belton House.
- Dimensions
- 18 cm (8vo)
- Associated people
- Faithorne, William, (1616-1691,)
- Young, James, (active 1642-1653,)
- Pulleyn, Octavian,
- Fye, Bruce,
- Fye, Lois B.,