MASCAGNI (Paolo). Vasorum lymphaticorum corporis humani historia et ichnographia. Senis (Siena), Carli Pazzini, 1787. Large folio, marbled fawn half-basin (Binding of the period). 2 ff. (title and dedication), 138 pp. 41 full-page plates. First edition and first print run of this magnificent atlas. In 1784, the author published a kind of prospectus in French illustrated with only 4 plates. "The spectacular copperplates by Ciro Santi depict vessels in some of the finest detail present in anatomical illustration before the advent of photography" (Norman). Mascagni taught anatomy in Siena. We owe him the discovery of almost half of all known lymphatic vessels, thanks to his method of injecting mercury. He described almost all the lymph nodes in the human body. His Vasorum lymphaticorum is printed on fine heavy paper, the title is adorned with an allegorical vignette by Ciro Santi, and the dedication page to Leopold II, Grand Duke of Tuscany, is engraved in a baroque frame with cherubs and coats of arms. The 41 plates, most signed C. Santi, are numbered I to XXV, 14 having been reproduced in line opposite. Worn binding, fine copy. Garrison-Morton 1104 - Blake 291 - Norman 1450.