This space was used in the past for the preparation of corpses to be dissected and analyzed during

laboratory classes in Medicine and Anatomy. The phrase MORS UBI GAUDET SUCCURRERE

VITAE inscribed above the entrance leading into the Anatomical Theatre approximately translates to

“this is the place where death rejoices in helping life” and pays homage to the fact that the

laboratory and practical classes held here contributed the expansion of knowledge in medicine. In

the decades that followed 1922, this space was transformed into a museum for the university.

The Anatomical Theatre at the University of Padua is the oldest permanent anatomical theatre in the

entire world that is still standing and preserved to date. It was constructed in 1594 at the behest of

Girolamo Fabrici d’Acquapendente, the esteemed professor of Anatomy. The wooden structure

represents a true masterpiece of engineering and artistic sophistication and was likely designed by

Fra (Brother) Paolo Sarpi; the theatre is shaped like an inverted cone with an elliptical plan, and it is

divided into six orders of balustrades spiraled around the dissection table. In the narrow space

between the railing on each level, the theatre can hold a standing capacity of approximately 250

people.