ANA 



ANA 



up and swelled, and yields to the impres- 

 sion of the fingers, like dough Sec Mt- 



\\ \STATICA, the rote of Jericho, in 

 botany, a genus of the Tctradynamia Sili- 

 culosa class of plan:*, tin- caK x of which 

 is a deciduous pcrianthium, consisting of 

 four oval, oblong, concave, erect, and de- 

 ciduous leaves; its flowers consist of four 

 roundish petals, disposed in the form of a 

 cross; and its fruit is a short bilocular pod, 

 containing in each cell a single roundish 

 seed. There are Uvo species; one is 

 found growing naturally on the coast of 

 the Red sea, in Palestine, and near Cairo, 

 in sandy places. The stalks are ligneous, 

 though the plant is annual. It is preser- 

 ved iu botanic gardens for the variety, 

 and in some curious gardens for the odd- 

 ness of the plant, which, if taken up before 

 it is withered, and kept entire in a dry 

 room, may he long preserved, and uftcr 

 being many years in this situation, if the 

 root is placed in a glass of water a few- 

 hours, the buds of the flowers will swell, 

 open, and appear as if newly taken out of 

 the ground. The second species, called 

 the A. syriaca, is a native of Austria, Ste- 

 ria, Carniola, Syria, and Sumatra. These 

 plants, being annual, can be propagated 

 only by seeds, which rarely ripen in Eng- 

 land. 



AN ATOMY is the art of examining ani- 

 mal bodies by dissection. It teaches the 

 structure and functions of these bodies, 

 and shews nearly on what life and health 

 depend. When these are well Understood, 

 a great step is made towards the know- 

 ledge and cureofdisi 



It is derived from the Greek verb, 

 ctiatTiu.\u, I cut up : yet we. do not com- 

 hend under it tile mere cutting of dead 

 bixlics ; but ever}' operation, by which we 

 endeavour to discover the structure and 

 use of any part of the bodv. 



As every animal body is the subject of 

 anatomy, we divide it into the Imiimn and 

 nmfturativ?. The first of these, which is 

 confined to the human body, forms the 

 subject of the present article ; tin- last, 

 which is extended to the whole animal 

 creation, will be considered under the 

 head of OMIMH vi u I ANVI.IVV. The 

 offices or functions of vlie various parts of 

 the body are the objects of die se.ence of 

 'i.m.y : to which article the reader 

 -,s referred for those subjects. 



The limits to which we are confined, 

 by the nature of the present work, will 

 prevent usfrom entering much into the de- 

 tails of the structure and composition of 

 the human bodv. We shall present the 



VOL. I. 



reader with a general sketch of the sub- 

 ject, as being more suited to the space 

 which this article is allowed to occupy. 

 After a cursory view of the origin and 

 progress of anatomical science, we shall 

 give a general description of the compo- 

 nent parts of the human body, and their 

 functions ; and proceed in the last place 

 to the inore particular enumeration and 

 description of the various organs. 



HISTOHT OF ANATI'.xr. 



The want of records leaves us in the 

 dark, with regard to the origin of this art.; 

 yet it isrcasonable'to conclude, that, Dke 

 most other arts, it had no precise begin- 

 ning. The nature of the thing would not 

 admit of its lying for a time altogether 

 concealed, and of being suddenly brought 

 to light, either by chance, or genius, or 

 industry. 



All the studies and arts which are ne- 

 cessary in human life arc so interesting 

 and obvious, that man in every situation 

 has always b} instinct and common sense 

 turned his thoughts to them and made 

 some progress in the cultivation of them. 

 To talk seriously of the invention of agri- 

 culture, architecture, astronomy, naviga- 

 tion, mechanics, physic, surgery, or ana- 

 tomy, by some particular man, or in one 

 particular country, or at a time subsequent 

 to some prior sera, would be to discover 

 great ignorance of human nature. We 

 might just as well suppose, that, till a cer- 

 tain period of time, man was without in- 

 stinctive appetites, and without observa- 

 tion and reflection, and that in a happy 

 hour he found out the art of supporting 

 life by taking food. All such arts, in a 

 less or more cultivated state, were, from 

 the beginning-, and ever will be, found in 

 all parts of the inhabited world. 



The first men who lived inns' soon h:ne 

 acquired some notions of the structure of 

 their own bodies, particular!} of the ex- 

 ternal parts, and of .some < \en of the in- 

 ternal, si,.:h as bones, joints, and .sinew s . 

 which aiv exposed to the examination <! 

 the senses in the living body. 



This nide know ! indeed gra- 



dually improved by the accidents to which 

 the body is exposed, by the i 

 life, and by the various rnston.s, ceivmo- 

 ! id superstitions of different nations. 

 Thus, the . "foodies killed by 



violence, attention to wounded men, and 

 to many diseases, the various waysof put- 

 ting criminals to dea'h, the funeral cere- 

 monies, and a variety of such tilings, must 

 have shewn men, every day, more and 



