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The oldest anatomical theater still standing in the world, where "the dead are pleased to help the living."
The anatomical theater of the University of Padua's Palazzo del Bo is the oldest surviving dissection arena in the world, having been built in 1594 by Girolamo Fabricius Acquapendente. Inscription from the 16th century still stands: "Hic locus ubi mors east gaudet succurrere vitae," meaning "This is a place where the dead are pleased to help the living." A chamber next to the theater showcases old medical instruments. The 300-seat theater is oval in design and features six carved walnut tiers. Each presses in on the other so that pupils could see the dissection table, which is still in use and where corpse dissections were conducted until 1872.
