The Canon of Avicenna

These three woodcut panels from Avicenna's Canon Medicinae illustrate the treatment of spinal dislocations. The scenes depict a physician applying manual pressure and traction to a patient's back, demonstrating the practical application of Greco-Arabic medical knowledge in a 16th-century European context. The figures are shown in contemporary Eastern attire, reflecting the work's origins while serving as a vital instructional tool for Renaissance surgeons.

This series of woodcuts from the 1595 Latin edition of Avicenna’s Canon of Medicine illustrates mechanical methods for treating spinal dislocations. The panels depict the use of traction and leverage, showing a physician—distinguished by his turban—applying pressure to a patient’s back. These images highlight the enduring influence of Islamic medical knowledge on European surgical practice during the early modern period.

This intricate title page engraving for Johann Salomo Semler's treatise features a symbolic landscape centered on a serpent confined within a cage, bathed in rays of light descending from the heavens. Above the scene, a banner bears the Latin motto 'HOC ERIT IN VOTIS' (This will be in my prayers), reflecting the author's theological aspirations. Signed by the engraver J. D. Philippin, this work exemplifies the sophisticated use of emblem-like imagery in 18th-century German academic publishing.

This intricate woodcut diagram illustrates the anatomy of the human eye as understood in the early modern period, based on the teachings of Avicenna. It depicts the various layers (tunics) and fluids (humors) of the eye, as well as its connection to the optic nerve and the protective layers of the brain. Such diagrams were essential for medical students and practitioners, bridging the gap between ancient Greek medical knowledge and emerging Renaissance anatomical studies.

This circular emblem for 'Philosophia Hermetica' depicts a pelican in its piety, a traditional symbol of self-sacrifice and Christ-like devotion, here applied to the process of alchemical transformation. The bird is shown atop a cubic stone adorned with roses, representing the stability and completion of the Great Work.