Harvey studies the circulation of the blood

In short

The English doctor William Harvey, who had studied at the University of Padua, wanted to understand how blood moves around the body. With experiments and measurements he showed that the heart works like a pump and pushes the blood round a closed circuit: it leaves through the arteries and comes back through the veins. Before then people believed that blood was constantly made by the liver and used up by the organs. He explained his discovery in 1628 in a short book in Latin.

Why it matters It was the foundation of modern physiology, the science of how the body works.

Source: Treccani, entry “Harvey, William”

Where we are in the era “Early modern age”

Your turn

Name ______________________ Class ______ Date __________

1. When did it happen? Find the date at the top and write it here:

2. Tell it in your own words: what happened?

3. Draw the scene below.

storiascopio.com/en/event/harvey-studies-the-circulation-of-the-blood/ · free worksheet, you may photocopy it for your class