“The man without insight into the fabric of his body has no knowledge of himself”

Abstract

In 1620, John Moir said, “Self-knowledge can, and ought, to apply not only to the soul, but also to the body; the man without insight into the fabric of his body has no knowledge of himself. This idea, written over four centuries ago, will be embraced by our readers. This issue of Clinical Anatomy includes original studies on soleus and Scarpa's fasciae, the nerve to zygomaticus major, and a novel method of evaluating bone density. Additionally, educational and historical papers are included.

John Moir was a student at Marischal College, founded in 1593 in Aberdeen, located in the northeast part of Scotland. His lecture notes have been published, giving insight into medical education in the early 17th century (French, 1975). For example, he notes, “nerves have no perceptible cavity internally, as the veins and arteries have.”

French RK. 1975. Anatomical education in a Scottish university, 1620: an annotated translation of the lecture notes of John Moir. In: Texts in the History of Medicine. Aberdeen, Scotland. Aberdeen: Equipress.