Johann Vesling

Johann Vesling (Latin: Veslingius) (1598–30.8.1649) was a German anatomist and botanist from Minden, Westphalia. In his youth he came to Vienna together with his father, where he later studied medicine. In 1628 he was applied as an "Incisor" at the medical college in Venice. In the same year travelled to Egypt and Jerusalem, where he was the personal physician of the Venice consul and did extensive studies of the country's flora (particularly medicinal plants). In 1632 he became professor of anatomy and surgery at Padua, where he was an instructor to Thomas Bartholin. Later in his career, he succeeded Alpino Alpini (died 1637) as director of the botanical garden at the University of Padua.

Vesling is remembered for the 1641 publication of "Syntagma anatomicum, publicis dissectionibus, in auditorum usum, diligenter aptatum", which was a popular textbook based on his anatomical dissections in Padua. In this work he provided an early discussion of the human lymphatic system. Vesling also performed important studies of blood circulation, and was one the first physicians to describe the brain's circle of Willis.

References

* [http://www.tektonics.org/scim/scientistu.html Scientists of the Christian Faith]
* [http://fm.iowa.uiowa.edu/fmi/xsl/hardin/heirs/record_detail.xsl?-db=heirs&-lay=weblayout&HeirsNo=476&-find Heirs of Hippocrates; Johann Vesling]