Vortrag: Staging Anatomy: Theatricality as a Paradigm of Knowledge Making in 17th-century London

Staging Anatomy: Theatricality as a Paradigm of Knowledge Making in 17th-century London.

At first glance, theatre and science seem to be diametrically opposed. Theatre is considered the art of concealing the real world, while science strives to uncover natural phenomena. How, then, can we explain why early modern anatomists chose the theatre as the venue for their public dissections? How did it come about that the Renaissance architect Inigo Jones not only designed the masks of the Stuart kings, but also built the anatomical theatre of the London Barber-Surgeons Company? Based on Christel Meier-Staubach’s study of “intertheatricality” in the early modern period, the lecture investigates how the paradigm of theatricality influenced the construction of the Barber Surgeons‘ anatomical theatre in comparison to other venues.

Gehalten von: Christine Beese
Datum: 24.09.2025, 12:00 Uhr

Medical Museion Copenhagen
Bredgade 62
1260 København
Denmark