The Body of Evidence: Corpses and Proofs in Early Modern European Medicine

When, why and how was it first believed that the corpse could reveal ’signs’ useful for understanding the causes of death and eventually identifying those responsible for it? The Body of Evidence. Corpses and Proofs in Early Modern European Medicine, edited by Francesco Paolo de Ceglia, shows how in the late Middle Ages the dead body, which had previously rarely been questioned, became a specific object of investigation by doctors, philosophers, theologians and jurists. The volume sheds new light on the elements of continuity, but also on the effort made to liberate the semantization of the corpse from what were, broadly speaking, necromantic practices, which would eventually merge into forensic medicine.

Francesco Paolo de Ceglia, Ph.D. (2001), is a Professor of History of Science at the University of Bari, where he directs the Interuniversity Research Center, Seminary of the History of Science. He has often been a fellow at the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science in Berlin. He has published monographs and articles on the relationship between the history of science and theology, including The Secret of Saint Januarius. Natural History of a Neapolitan Miracle (Einaudi, 2016).