The Weighing Chair of Sanctorius Sanctorius: A Replica

NTM
Teresa Hollerbach

Abstract

In 1614, the physician Sanctorius Sanctorius (1561-1636) published his most famous work entitled Ars […] de statica medicina (On static medicine). This is a work composed of aphorisms that present the practical results of a series of weighing procedures, rather than theoretical observations. De statica medicina is the result of a large number of test series that Sanctorius carried out over many years with the weighing chair he constructed himself in order to quantify the so-called perspiratio insensibilis, an insensible perspiration of the human body. Through his weighing experiments, Sanctorius introduced the idea of quantitative research into physiology. Although historical accounts ascribe an important role to Sanctorius as the founder of a new medical science, up until now the design of his weighing chair and the method of measurement have not been closely analysed. The aim of this paper is to close this gap. Through a collaboration between the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science and the Technical University of Berlin (Institute of Vocational Education and Work Studies), Sanctorius's weighing chair was reconstructed and experiments carried out with it. This opened new perspectives on Sanctorius's work and led to...Continue Reading

References

Sep 15, 1975·Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology. B, Comparative Biochemistry·C F Phleger
Jan 17, 2002·History of Science; an Annual Review of Literature, Research and Teaching·L Dacome
Mar 18, 2011·Isis; an International Review Devoted to the History of Science and Its Cultural Influences·Peter Heering

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