A census of the edition of 1555 of Andreas Vesalius' De Humani Corporis Fabrica

The purpose of this study was to determine the locations of the second edition (1555) of the De Humani Corporis Fabrica written by Vesalius. Contacts were made with institutions of higher learning, museum libraries, and libraries of national collections, libraries of research institutions, cathedral libraries, antique book dealers, trade journals, book auctions and private collectors. A total of 113 copies of the 1555 Fabrica were found in University and Institutional Libraries. Of them, 33 (29%) were in the United Kingdom; 35 (31%) in Europe and 45 (40%) in the USA. Location of the second edition Vesalius in private collections was more difficult to objectively determine and accounts for approximately 10% of the second Edition books in the census.