from the tiniest veins

8/20/2019 From the Tiniest Veins

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From the tiniest veins, arteries and nerves to serial cross-sections of the spinal cord, these incredibly detaileddissections show and label most every part of the human body. The collection is the product of a 17-yearcollaboration between David L. Bassett, a School of Medicine alumnus and faculty member known for his elegantdissections and love for the human body, and William Gruber, the photographer who invented the View-Masterstereoscopic viewing device. The partnership between the two resulted in the production of the Stereoscopic Atlasof Human Anatomy, which began in 1948, but was not not completed until 1962. It consisted of 221 View-Masterreels with 1,554 color stereo views of dissections of every body region. Each stereo view was accompanied by ablack-and-white, labeled drawing and explanatory text. A courtesy the Lane Medical Archives (thanks Drew!), todaywe present you some of the most impressive pictures of The Basset Collection. Meet the Human Body.

A deep dissection of the side of the

head shows the many blood vessels(red arteries, blue veins) and nerves(graying white) in the facial region.The hole is the external ear canal.The temporal muscle, used forchewing, is the prominent fan shapedmuscle on the side of skull, behindthe mouth and above the jaw.

After the removal of an outer layer ofbones around the jaw, the dissectionshows blood vessels and sensorynerves to the lower teeth and chin.


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The onion-like structure is an eye,seen from above with the bony roofof the eye socket removed. Theprofusion of blood vessels and themuscles that rotate the eye arevisible.

A pelvis from a woman, right, islighter and wider than that of a man,

left. The wider angle of a woman'spubic bones at the base of the pelvisallows birthing of a baby.

Removal of the skin and the layer oftough tissue beneath it, the palmarfascia, reveals a complexarrangement of blood vessels andnerves in the hand and wrist.


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This dissection of the kidneys wasdone after red latex was injected intothe arteries and blue latex into theveins.

With all layers of the skin removedon the left side of the head and neck,the dissection displays the bloodvessels and nerves of the scalp,almost all of which come from theperiphery, not through the skull.Colored latex was injected into theblood vessels: red for arteries, bluefor veins. The structures in the neckremain covered by a tough layer oftissue known as the cervical fascia.

Inside the vertebral column, cut inhalf vertically, is a channel for thespinal nerves. The brown material isthe bones; the white material is theintervertral disks that sometimes"rupture," causing back pain. Ahorizontal split has been made on theleft to show the connection of thesacrum, a triangular bone at the baseof the spine, to the pelvis.


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This view of the wrist joint featuresthe two rows of four carpal boneseach and shows how they areconnected to the bones of theforearm and the fingers.

A dissection of the leg and the footdisplays the long tendons connectedto the toes, and the blood vessels

and nerves to the top of the foot.

This dissection of the backbone wasperformed by Donald Stilwell,another Stanford professor, for theBassett atlas. Note the profusion ofarterial blood vessels nourishing thevertebral area of the neck and chestarea. Also, at the top, the ends of thevertebral arteries, which pass intothe skull to nourish the brain.


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The mediastinum, a central chestcompartment located between thelungs, houses the heart. Immediatelyto the right of the heart is the aorta,the largest artery of the body. To the

right of the aorta are groups of bloodvessels (one artery and twocompanion veins) that run betweenthe ribs to distribute blood throughthe body. The phrenic nerve, whichsends messages to the diaphragm tobreath, is visible as it crosses theheart vertically.

Dissection of the meninges and brainin situ. On the right the calvaria andlayers of the scalp are shown inrelation to the dura. On the left thedura has been cut away to reveal thecerebral hemisphere and cerebellumcovered with the arachnoid

membrane. The confluence of thesinuses is shown.

The sclera and cornea have been cutaway on the medial side of a righteye to display the anterior chamber,iris, ciliary body and outer surface ofthe choroid. Although none of thevessels has been injected, thebranches of the superior and inferiormedial vorticose veins are clearlyvisible. The long posterior ciliaryartery was cut across in the resectionof the sclera but its course can betraced nearly to the ciliary body.


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On this dissection of the heart, theepicardium has been removed fromall parts of the atria with theexception of the left auricle

Dissection of lungs in situ. The lungshave been dissected from theirmedial surfaces and are reflectedlaterally for this image. Fragmentaryportions of all of the chambers of theheart have been preserved. The greatvessels have been kept intact,although the aorta and pulmonarytrunk have been elevated to exposemore posterior parts of the heart.

The cervical spinal cord. By removing

the rear arches of the neck (cervical)vertebra and the fibrous covering(dura) over the spinal cord one seesthe cervical spinal cord and itsnerves. The blood vessels nourishingthe cord and vertebral column andthe origin of the cord from the brainare clearly shown.


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Dissection of thorax from a posteriorapproach. Ribs and vertebral bodieshave been resected bilaterallybetween the second and the ninththoracic segments. The periosteumwhich covered the inner surfaces ofthe ribs have been preserved in mostareas. The anterior longitudinalligament, with remnants of theintervertebral discs attached, hasalso been retained in part. The lungshave been inflated and are visiblethrough the intact costal pleura. Theproximal parts of the III-VII spinalnerves have been positioned on thepleura in such a way that their dorsaland ventral roots, dorsal rami andcommunications with thesympathetic trunks are visible. These

components are labeled for the leftseventh thoracic nerve. Theintercostal arteries and veins havebeen cut off in various ways.

The knee joint opened from the frontshows the inner surface of the kneecap or patella within its largeligament which is folded downwardand forward. The ear shapedcartilages lie on the surface of the

joint floor formed by the tibia.Between the cartilages one sees thecut ends of the cruciate ligaments sooften injured in athletics andfrequently reconstructed surgically.


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The Jawbone. The masseter muscleof mastication reflected back toexpose the jawbone (mandible) andthe related vessels, nerves andmuscles.

from the tiniest veins

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