i6o 



BIOLOGY AND ITS MAKERS 



anatomy of vertebrates (1866-68). In much of his thought 

 he was singular, and many of his general conclusions have 

 not stood the test of time. He undertook to establish the 

 idea of an archtype in vertebrate anatomy. He clung to the 

 vertebral theory of the skull long after Huxley had shown such 

 a theory to be untenable. The idea that the skull is made up 



Fig. 45. — Lorenzo Oken, 1779-1851 



of modified vertebrae was propounded by Goethe and Oken. 

 In the hands of Oken it became one of the anatomical con- 

 clusions of the school of Naturphilosophie. This school of 

 transcendental philosophy was founded by Schelling, and 

 Oken (Fig. 45) was one of its typical representatives. The 

 vertebral theory of the skull was, therefore, not original 

 with Owen, but he adopted it, greatly elaborated it, and 



