[On the notes of the Xinkan Huangdimingtangjiujing (see text for symbol) in the possession of the National Diet Library].

This paper analyzes the notes of Xinkan huangdimingtangjiujing which are in the possession of the National Diet Library, particularly referring to those notes which include "master said", or "master's theory". Some of those are found in the answers from Manase Dosan (see text for symbol) to Hata Soha (see text for symbol) collected in the Kotei meido kyukyo hushin shosho (see text for symbol) which is the record of the question and answer letters between Manase Dosan and Hata Soha. This research indicates that this volume has a close relation to the acupuncture research of Dosan's or Soha's school. And it indicates that the "master" in the Notes of Xinkan huangdimingtangjiujing refers to Dosan. Acupuncture research has been flourishing since the Edo era and has compiled a lot of volumes on acupuncture. This volume contains some pioneering pieces of this research done in the Azuchi Momoyama era by Dosan and Soha, and is a precious material, showing that some of the state of affairs of the research done in that age still remains today.

[The copy of De humani corporis fabrica of Andreas Vesalius of the municipal library of Reims]. / L'exemplaire du De humani corporis fabrica d'Andreas Vesalius de la bibliothèque municipale de Reims.

The author presents a copy of the De humani corporis fabrica by Andreas Vesalius; this book is preserved in the department of rare books of the municipal Library in Reims. This copy is a first edition as the author gives positive proofs. This book results of a donation to the Minimes's congregation of Reims by Seigneur Guillaume Le Vergeur, Count of Saint Souplet and Baillif of Vermandois in the 17th century. Guillaume Le Vergeur has also given other precious books to the monastery's library and his name is inscribed on the register of obituaries and on the pediment of the Minimes' Church.

Exposure to carcinogens and mortality in a cohort of restoration workers of water-damaged library materials following the River Arno flooding in Florence, 4 November 1966.

BACKGROUND: In Florence, Italy, the Arno River overflowed on 4 November 1966 and the rare library collections of the National Central Library in Florence (FNCL) were flooded. A Restoration Centre was immediately set up. For book restoration many toxic chemicals were used, such as chlorinated solvents, ethylene oxide (EtO), formaldehyde, petroleum distillates, and pesticides. The study's aims were: (I) to document the restoration process, (II) to identify the potential chemical exposures, (III) to evaluate the mortality experience of restorers. METHODS: A small cohort of 168 workers was identified. The restorers were employed in the FNCL's Restoration Centre during the years 1967-1976. We excluded 9 subjects from the analysis because no working period data were available. Mortality from all causes, from all cancers, and from cancers of specific sites was compared with that of the Italian general population. Standardized Mortality Rates (SMRs) and their 95% confidence intervals were estimated. RESULTS: Restorers were exposed to relatively low levels of several carcinogens. A non-significant excess of cancer mortality was found. Significant increases in brain neoplasm among men and in uterine cancer among women were found, CONCLUSIONS: The small cohort size hampers interpretation of the results. Larger epidemiology studies on library material restorers are needed in order to evaluate risks in this activity. Recommendations to improve future studies are given.

Ambrosius Holbein's memento mori map for Sir Thomas More's Utopia. The meanings of a masterpiece of early sixteenth century graphic art.

This paper describes how, and asks why, the Renaissance artist Ambrosius Holbein hid a skull within the overall design of his woodcut map of Sir Thomas More's Utopia. (Fig. 2) This map was prepared for the 1518 Froben edition of the book, and was probably commissioned by Erasmus of Rotterdam. Its identification now is made easier by the habits of interpretation with which all dentists are equipped thanks to their skill in dental radiology, and by the recognition of teeth appearing in an unlikely disguise.

Selling the silver: country house libraries and the history of science.

Country houses have long acted as scholarly research centres, and the contents and organization of their libraries reveal how knowledge was created and transmitted through scientific networks: they provide material evidence of intellectual and social cultures. Manuscripts are particularly appreciated in this regard because they are unique, but individual books also differ and copies of the same book are not always identical -- they might be annotated by authors and readers, and the printed text can vary as well -- so they also carry invaluable historical information. When libraries are broken up, access to the past is permanently blocked.

[From the library of the Dutch Journal of Medicine. Giovanni Battista Morgagni: De sedibus, et causis morborum per anatomen indagatis, 1761]. / Uit de bibliotheek van het Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Geneeskunde. Giovanni Battista Morgagni: De sedibus, et causis morborum per anatomen indagatis, 1761.

The library of the Vereniging Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Geneeskunde (Dutch Journal of Medicine Association) is a treasure-trove of information for those who wish to study the roots of the identity of the modern doctor. Recently, a book published in 1761 was purchased: De sedibus, et causis morborum per anatomen indagatis was written by Giovanni Battista Morgagni (1682-1771) when he was almost eighty years old. This book, in which Morgagni recorded the findings of 700 autopsies and linked them to the complaints of the patients and the symptoms of their diseases, marked the advent of anatomic pathology as a separate medical discipline.

[The original of the "Tratado de Urología" by Francisco Díaz. Lost during the fire of the Monastery of El Escorial in 1671?]. / El original del "Tratado de Urología" de Francisco Díaz. Desaparecido en el incendio del Monasterio de El Escorial de 1671?

The publication of the Treaty of Urology of Francisco Díaz towards the end of the sixteenth Century, was a milestone in the History of medicine. The originality and precociousness of his doctrine entailed a true revolution in the genesis of medicosurgical literature, considering that the text constitutes an inspired anticipation to the specialization age. Ever since the last century, all historians and annotators of this work have asked themselves whether there was an earlier edition to that of 1588 since the title "Newly printed treaty ..." invites such a inference. So far, every investigation searching for the original or a copy of the first edition have been in vain. This paper, based on documents and old works from the Archive of Protocols in Madrid, Library of the Royal Palace and Library of El Escorial Monastery, reveals certain data until now unpublished on the destiny of most of the copies belonging to the second edition presented and brings into light old references on which account is given that the original "Treaty of Urology" by Francisco Díaz, considered to be a Sixteenth Century Codex was lost in the fire of the El Escorial Monastery in 1671.

[The history of Biblioteca de Manguinhos and its rare collections]. / A história e o acervo das obras raras da Biblioteca de Manguinhos.

This article narrates the creation of Fundação Oswaldo Cruz Biblioteca de Manguinhos Library) and its rare collections of books, magazines, journals, brochures, leaflets and theses, important publications on the history of biological sciences and health from the seventeenth to the twentieth century. It also describes the rich original ornaments and decoration of the library room and its furniture. It recovers the history of the library these past hundred years, which is closely associated to the history of Fundação Oswaldo Cruz.

[Ebers Papyrus. The book of medical knowledge of the 16th century B.C. Egyptians]. / Papirus Ebersa. Ksiega wiedzy medycznej egipcjan z XVI w P.N.E.

In 2nd century B.C. Clemens Alexanrinus was sure, that the Egyptians collected all their knowledge in 42 secret books. of which last six contained medical knowledge. Despite this and records of other ancient authors, for long time the opinion about the history of medicine was not changed. In traditional view the role of Hippocrates and the Greeks was emphasized. In 19th century egyptologist began finding Egyptian papyri, whose contents concerned medical matters. The first medical papyrus was published by Georg Ebers in 1875. The Ebers Papyrus is a scroll 20,23 meters in length and contains 108 columns of text. I is dated at the reign of Amenophis I (1536 B.C.). This papyrus was published and translated by different researches (the most valuable is German edition Grundriss de Medizin de alten ägypter, and based on this Paul Ghalioungui edition). In the opinion of Grundriss, chaotic arrangement of medical advices in papyrus suggest different originals from which they drew. The text of The Ebers Papyrus is ordered in series of prescriptions, which are grouped according to different diseases, illnesses and injuries. ALmost all of those groups have introduction by the formula: "Here begins.." used on 36 occasions. They are, however, often varied and disorganised. The owner of this papyrus was probably a physician - the text mentions about "physician secrets". Herodotus writes, that Egyptian physicians were specialized, which seems to be confirmed by The Ebers Papyrus.