Zur Architectur des Menschenschadels

Zur Architectur des Menschenschadels folio book
Adoption Amount: $1,800
Category: Preserve for the Future
Location: John Wesley Powell Library of Anthropology

Zur Architectur des Menschenschadels : nebst geometrischen Originalzeichnungen von Schadeln normaler und abnormer Form

By Johann Christian Gustav Lucae. Frankfurt am Main: Heinrich Keller, 1857.

Published in 1857, this 70-page folio consists of originally hand-drawn sketches of the human skull by German anatomist Johann C. G. Lucae of the Frankfurt Senckenberg Institute of Anatomy. Lucae was well known for his craniology studies. In English, the title translates to "The Architecture of the Human Skull." The two sections of the volume include 18 plates of abnormally formed skulls with measurements based on the work of famed German physician, Rudolph Virchow’s, work and 12 plates of normal skulls of named individuals. The volume is signed by and a gift of Aleš Hrdlička, a Smithsonian scientist and internationally-known physical anthropologist.

Condition and Treatment: 

This book has a mid-19th century quarter binding with a leather spine and paper covers printed with the title of the volume. The spine is missing and the sewing has failed. The text and plates of the human skull are very brittle. Conservators will wash the pages and plates in
de-ionized water. After drying, they will be placed in Mylar L-sleeves. A clamshell box will be created to house the volume and the original covers.

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