Mitani, Soshu Katai Hatsumo, Japanese colored woodcut anatomical images, 1816

Japan’s medical community continued to rely on traditional Chinese medicine for hundreds of years after the West began medical dissection of cadavers. In the 1780s Japanese doctors commenced their first cadaver dissections. One result was this 1816 book of colored woodcuts, Japan’s first comprehensive work of anatomy. It included results of three Japanese autopsies. The authors also argued for adopting Western medical practices.