Reviews

"Looking through this book was a revelation ...."

"Produced by a small family firm during the decades around the start of the twentieth century these models constitute a stunning array of aesthetically beautiful sculptures in wax, founded on the meticulous observations of contemporary embryologists. In this delightful book Nick Hopwood provides an insight into how the models came to be, and of the role they played both in the attribution and the dissemination of new research findings. ... The book is lavishly illustrated, with high quality photographs of the models and catalogues, and is beautifully laid out ... a fascinating and enjoyable read."

"This beautifully produced, handsomely illustrated book ... convincingly demonstrates [the Zieglers'] crucial role as collaborators in developing the visual understanding of the embryo that remains the basis for many textbook images today. ... Thanks to Hopwood's intrepid detective-work, beautiful color reproduction, and the generosity of a number of museums, libraries, and institutes, Embryos in Wax provides an extraordinary visual record of the models and the conditions surrounding their production. ... Hopwood has made the history of embryology look different - more beautiful, vivid, and physical - and we now need to view it with new eyes."

"A virtue of Hopwood's study, quite apart from its fine resurrection of the media of 19th-century science, is that it makes one wary of all forms of visualization, whether they take on the somber, static solidity of the Zieglers' wax or the bright, dynamic life of today's 3D computer animations."

"Developmental biology remains an intensely visual discipline. This book reminds us of the artistic history of embryology and its importance in both understanding the embryo and transmitting that understanding to our students."

"In an appendix that will win the hearts of all museum curators, Hopwood includes 27 gorgeous color plates, a reprint of the Zieglers' last catalog, an inventory of the models in order of publication, and a bibliography of printed works from the scientific literature that include images of the models. The volume is very well documented and indexed. The publishers are to be congratulated for an exceptionally useful and beautiful book."