Monument Philip Verheyen

Monument of Philip Verheyen. His father was a small farmer, but the local pastor noticed his talent and taught him Latin from the age of 22, with a view to training as a priest. In 1677 he became primus inter pares at the Faculty of Arts. However, an infection in his left leg led to an amputation, resulting in his having to abandon his training as a priest, and the following year he went on to study medicine (it is said that he dissected his amputated leg himself). In 1681 he obtained the title of licentiate in medicine and worked as such in Leiden and Amsterdam, which brought him into contact with famous contemporaries such as Antoni van Leeuwenhoek. In 1689 he was appointed by Charles II of Spain as regius (royal) professor of anatomy and as rector magnificus. In 1692 he was also appointed professor of surgery and published his Corporis Humani Anatomia, which would remain a European standard work and handbook for decades and was reprinted more than twenty times.

Pascal Brackman