Anatomy in its relation to art : an exposition of the bones & muscles of the human body with especial reference to their influence upon its actions & external form / by George McClellan; illus. by 338 original drawings and photographs made by the author and expressly prepared for this work.

  • McClellan, George, 1849-1913.
Date:
1901
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Anatomy in its relation to art : an exposition of the bones & muscles of the human body with especial reference to their influence upon its actions & external form / by George McClellan; illus. by 338 original drawings and photographs made by the author and expressly prepared for this work. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, Harvard Medical School.

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    depression at this locality, and it may be felt in all persons through the over- lying (deltoid) muscle. When the shoulder-joint is in action it is mainly strengthened by the tendons of the biceps muscle, which are disposed so that they preserve the relation of the head of the arm-bone to the shallow depression on the shoulder-blade, and at the same time prevent a too great separation or dislocation (Plate 43, Fig. i). (See page 74.) At the elbow the joint (Plate 8, Figs, i, 2, ^, 4,5' and 6) is essentially a hinge, the bones entering into its formation being so adapted that they can only be moved in flexion and extension. The elbow-joint consists of the lower end of the arm-bone and the upper end of one of the bones of the fore-arm (the ulna), held together by lateral ligaments. The upper end of the other fore-arm bone (the radius), although it is present at the elbow, does not play any part in its function. (See page 71.) The hand is attached at the wrist-joint (Plate 9, Figs. ^ and 6) to the lower end of the radius, and as the upper end of that bone (radius) is held by a special circular ligament to the upper end of the ulna, below the elbow, it is enabled to follow the motions of extension and flexion at that joint, and at the same time be turned over backward (supinated) or forward (pronated) through the actions of the muscles upon the radius, which can be twisted around the ulna (Plates 47 and 48.) This is one of the wonderful mechanical arrangements which provides an instance of the best possible means toward an useful end to which the con- struction of the body bears witness from whatever point of view it is studied. The lower end of the ulna is hardly any more a feature of the wrist-joint than is the upper end of the radius of the elbow, it is attached to the hand by a loose ligament. Between the companion bones of the fore-arm there is a strong interosseus membrane which, being attached to their inner borders, serves to check rotation of the radius carrying the hand with it, in supination or pro- nation. In consequence of this arrangement, the wrist-joint is capable of flexion and extension and of circumduction to a limited degree. (The movements of the thumb and fingers are described with the hand, pages 80 to 86.) The joints of the upper extremity considered together show an inter-depend- ence which serves the purpose of prehension, and on occasion renders an imiportant means of defense. The harmony of action of the several joints at the fingers, the wrist, the elbow, and the shoulder, is best appreciated by noticing the