The Anatomical Machines of Raimondo di Sangro

Housed in glass cases in the basement of Sansevero Chapel in Naples, Italy, are two extraordinary exhibits. Called “anatomical machines”, they are two skeletons, one belonging to a man and the other to women. Draped over their bones is an intricate maze of veins, arteries and capillaries that crawl all over the skeletons’ legs, arms, skulls and ribs. For centuries it was rumored that the veins and arteries were real and the two figures were murdered to have their circulatory system preserved by some trick of alchemy. Photo: get directly down/Flickr The figures were commissioned by Prince Raimondo di Sangro, and realized by Giuseppe Salerno, an anatomist from Palermo, around 1763. Legend has it that Salerno had, under the Prince’s direction, injected a mysterious embalming substance into two of his servants while they were still alive which caused their blood to turn into metal, perfectly preserving their circulatory system after death. In reality, the blood vessels were constructed using metal wires, colored wax and silk, but their reproduction is so accurate that even modern scientists believe that experiments with injections on victims might have been performed prior to reconstruction. If there was someone who was capable of such experiments, it was definitely Raimondo di Sangro. An alchemist and inventor, Sangro developed a method of mixing fireworks with different chemicals to produce an array of colors: turquoise, citrus yellow, the yellow of orange, the color of milk, and the red of rubies. He organized pyrotechnical theaters where he produced varied patterns and outlines of temples, architectural vistas, huts and fountains using fireworks alone. His fireworks also produced whistling tunes that reminded of birds singing. Raimondo di Sangro Once in his lab, Sangro accidentally set fire to a substance, which ignited continuously for more than three months without the slightest reduction in weight.