Have you ever wondered what beats beneath an animal's skin? Well, you wouldn't be the first one. The study of comparative anatomy has led to some of the most striking images ever created. For two and a half thousand years, the animal body has been picked apart to drive arguments in natural philosophy, to reinforce dogma, to remind us of death, to horrify, educate, and enthral.

This book recounts the intertwined intellectual and artistic journeys of comparative anatomy from antiquity to the present day. Rather than offering an exhaustive listing, it focuses on the distinctive artistic flavors of five great phases of anatomical endeavour. Horses opened like books, the leer of a shark's eye, the humming loom of the brain-all life is here, dissected, and depicted.

Lyrically written and accompanied by captivating illustrations from history's animal anatomists, this is the ideal read for designers, art lovers and scientists alike.