Complete Record - Heirs of Hippocrates No. 1537

HERBERT MAYO (1796-1852) A series of engravings intended to illustrate the structure of the brain and spinal chord in man. Burgess and Hill 1827 [2] iv, 16 pp., 7 plates, each plate accompanied by a duplicate outline plate. Text: 44 cm.; Plates: 44.7 cm.

Mayo studied with Sir Charles Bell (see No. 1294 ff.) at Middlesex Hospital before completing his medical degree at Leiden in 1818. He enjoyed a successful career of investigation and practice at Middlesex Hospital and of teaching at the Middlesex Hospital Medical School, Great Windmill Street School, and King's College. Bell confused the roles of the trigeminal and facial nerves in their innervation of the face. Mayo corrected Bell's mistake and clearly outlined the function of each nerve in his Anatomical and physiological commentaries (London, 1822-1823). Mayo also did important work on the theory of reflex action and wrote on pathology, digestion, syphilis, and rectal diseases. This series of plates on the structure of the nervous system were among the finest of the day. Mayo made the drawings himself and commented in the Preface that "In the hope of facilitating the studies of others, I have attempted to execute a series of drawings having a greater resemblance to the objects, they are intended to represent. . . ." (p. iv).

See Related Record(s): 1294

Gift of John Martin, M.D.