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The history of the use of cadavers is one that is filled with controversy, scientific advancements, and new discoveries. It all started in 3rd century ancient Greece with two physicians by the name of Herophilus of Chalcedon and Erasistratus of Ceos.[21]They practiced the dissection of cadavers in Alexandria, and it was the dominant means of learning anatomy.[3] After both of these men died the popularity of anatomical dissection decreased until it wasn’t used at all. It wasn’t revived until the 12th century and it became increasingly popular in the 17th century and has been used ever since. (21)

Even though both Herophilus and Erasistratus had permission to use cadavers for dissection there was still a lot of taboo surrounding the use of cadavers for anatomical purposes, and these feelings continued for hundreds of years. From the time that anatomical dissection gained its roots in the 3rd century to around the 18th century it was associated with dishonor, immorality, and unethical behavior. Many of these notions were because of religious beliefs and esthetic taboos (20) and were deeply entrenched in the beliefs of the public and the church. As mentioned above, the dissection of cadavers began to once again take hold around the 12th century. At this time dissection was still seen as dishonorable, however it was not outright banned. Instead, the church put forth certain edicts for banning and allowing certain practices. One that was monumental for scientific advancement was issued by the Holy Roman emperor Frederick II in 1231. (20) This decree stated that a human body will be dissected once every five years for anatomical studies, and attendance was required for all who was training to or currently practicing medicine or surgery. (20) These events are what led to the first sanctioned human dissection since 300 B.C. and was performed publicly by Mondino de Liuzzi. (20) This time period created a great deal of enthusiasm in what human dissection could do for science and attracted students from all over Europe to begin studying medicine.

In light of the new discoveries and advancements that were being made religious moderation of dissection relaxed significantly, however the public perception of it was still negative. Because of this perception, the only legal source of cadavers was the corpses of criminals who were executed, usually by hanging. (21) Many of the offenders whose crimes “warranted” dissection and their families even considered dissection to be more terrifying and demeaning than the crime or death penalty itself. (21) There were many fights and sometimes even riots when relatives and friends of the deceased and soon to be dissected tried to stop the delivery of corpses from the place of hanging to the anatomists. (22) The government at the time (17th century) took advantage of these qualms by using dissection as a threat against committing serious crimes. They even increased the number of crimes that were punished by hanging to over 200 offenses. (22) Nevertheless as dissection of cadavers became even more popular, anatomists were forced to find other ways to obtain cadavers.

As demand increased for cadavers from universities across the world, people began grave-robbing. These corpses were transported and put on sale for local anatomy professors to take back to their students. (21) The public tended to look the other way when it came to grave-robbing because the affected was usually poor or a part of a marginalized society. (21) There was more out-cry if the affluent or prominent members of society were affected, and this led to a riot in New York most commonly referred to as the Resurrection Riot of 1788. It all started when a doctor waved the arm of a cadaver at a young boy looking through the window, who then went home and told his father. Worrying that his recently deceased wife’s grave had been robbed, he went to check on it and realized that it had been. (21) This story spread and people accused local physicians and anatomists. The riot grew to 5,000 people and by the end medical students and doctors were beaten and six people were killed. (21) This led to many legal adjustments such as the Anatomy Acts put forth by the U.S. government. These acts opened up other avenues to obtaining corpses for scientific purposes with Massachusetts being the first to do so. In 1830 and 1833 they allowed unclaimed bodies to be used for dissection. (21) Laws in almost every state were subsequently passed and grave-robbing was essentially eradicated.

Although dissection became increasingly accepted throughout the years, it was still very much disapproved by the American public in the beginning of the 20th century. The disapproval mostly came from religious objections and dissection being associated with unclaimed bodies and therefore a mark of poverty. (21) There were many people that attempted to display dissection in a positive light, for example 200 prominent New York physicians publicly said they would donate their bodies after their death. (21) This and other efforts only helped in minor ways, and public opinion was much more affected by the exposure of the corrupt funeral industry. (21) It was found that the cost of dying was incredibly high and a large amount of funeral homes were scamming people into paying more than they had to. (21) These exposures didn’t necessarily remove stigma but created fear that a person and their families would be victimized by scheming funeral directors, therefore making people reconsider body donation.(21) Currently, body donation isn’t surrounded by stigma but can be considered as celebrated. Body donation has not only led to scientific advancements and discoveries, it has also led to lives being saved. If one donates their body after death, their organs can be used as transplants to save another’s life. The study of cadavers has led to incredible discoveries and saved millions of lives, even though it hit a few roadblocks along the way!