Anatomy is a type of biology that deals with the structure and design of a living organism. There are two main types of anatomy. Animal anatomy is called Zootomy and plant anatomy is called Phytotomy. To make the study of anatomy easier, it is often broken up by region or by system. This means you can study the anatomy of the heart or the respiratory system.



Anyone who has taken courses in anatomy in high school or college will tell you the information is fascinating, yet very hard to retain. There are so many different areas to cover and scientific names to remember. The area of anatomy is nothing new. It has been being researched for thousands of years, dating back to the Egyptians in 275 B.C.

While Leonardo da Vinci is well known for his famous paintings, very few people realize he was a huge contributor to the area of anatomy. He became interested in anatomy around 1489. He felt his drawings of the human body were missing many elements. He wanted them to be very accurate. He spent his time dissecting every inch of about thirty bodies he obtained from a mortuary in Rome.

The result of da Vinci's dissections are very detailed drawings of the human anatomy. There are over 700 such drawings completed by him. They detail the muscles, internal organs, the brain, and some of a fetus in the womb. His drawings indicate he knew great details about the circulation of blood throughout the body.

Anatomy is a fascinating subject. It can be broken down into specific regions of study. While anatomy can be difficult to understand and master it has allowed us to advance in many ways. People all over the world have benefited from understanding anatomy of the heart, eyes, respiratory system, and other systems of the body.

While we have come along way with anatomy, there is still many areas that we don't know enough about. The brain is one of the most complicated areas of anatomy. As technology continues to improve, our knowledge in the areas of anatomy will improve as well. This will allow us to have better medical treatments and procedures for future generations.