Even though this news piece is historically inaccurate, the appearance at auction of De Curtorum Chirurgia Per Insitionem (meaning The Surgery of Defects by Implantations) by Gaspare Tagliacozzi and published in 1597, is of interest. This is an antique cosmetic surgery manual which both the UK Daily News and Telegraph incorrectly called the first book of its kind. It recently sold for 11,000 GBP. The first cosmetic surgery “manual” covered nose jobs and came out of India hundreds of years prior. First ever nose jobs in 16th Century book:
Chris Albury, from Dominic Winter auction house which sold the book at its saleroom in Cirecester, Glos, said: “It’s a wonderful and rare book.
“The typography, illustrations and book design are of a fantastically high standard that would put most modern publishers to shame.
“What is strange is that the techniques and ideas in the book were clearly well-thought of at the time and yet all was so quickly forgotten following Tagliacozzi’s death.
“This might have been because it was not approved by the religious authorities at the time who might have considered him interfering with God’s work.
“There are also details and diagrams of the instruments used and other techniques that involved treatment to the ears and lips.
“We knew the book was extremely rare with copies hardly ever coming to auction so we were prepared for a battle between dealers and collectors.
“In fact, the book was finally bought by a practising plastic surgeon taking time out of his busy schedule to make a phone bid and fight off other determined room, phone and internet bidders.”
Read it all.
