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Deconstructionism
January/February 2007
photograph ©Richard Barnes
In the
mid-1800s, an anatomist named Claude Beauchene developed a novel way to display
the anatomy of the head. Beauchene would meticulously clean a skull, separate
its bones, and mount them on a stand designed to exhibit them at once
individually and in context. "The concept of the 'exploded' skull was actually
introduced by Leonardo da Vinci in his anatomical drawings," says Yale surgeon
and medical historian Sherwin B. Nuland '55MD. "Because a Beauchene preparation
leaves the component parts in their original spatial relationship to one
another, it's useful for studying complex structures."
This skull,
shown with some of its bones lowered on their movable supports, is part of a
comparative-anatomy teaching collection at the Peabody Museum of Natural
History that also includes the "exploded" skulls of fish, several mammals, and
a crocodile. The head probably belonged to an adult female, says Gary P.
Aronsen '04PhD, a research associate in biological anthropology. "It's a
beautiful specimen," says Aronsen, "and an exquisite example of a preparation
that required patience and artistic flair." |
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