ABSTRACT
Although anatomical collections are recognised as part of the country’s cultural heritage, up to now there has not been a systematic study of their creation and purpose. A copious legacy of long-gone scientific periods, the collections have been the subject of public debate on the occasion of requests for restitution. This chapter reconstructs the general context of anatomical studies in Italy, focusing on the last decades of the nineteenth century, when most of the findings were collected and prepared, and it investigates the regulatory framework and different uses that were made of them within the University of Turin.
