RCSI Heritage Collections

Since the  Heritage Council funding  announcement in April,  'Colles at 250' has meant a flurry of activity and events in RCSI.  If you haven't yet heard about 'Colles at 250', enjoy this short video and find out a little more... The Recap... A unique collaboration between RCSI Library and the Men's Shed Association resulted in two beautiful display cases for Heritage Collections pop-up exhibitions, as well as this wonderful short video on the project. Pop-up exhibition on Abraham Colles   Men's Shed team The 'Colles at 250' series of Heritage Week events in August paid tribute to the anatomist and surgeon Abraham Colles, a pivotal figure in the history of  medicine and of RCSI. The series included discussions, tours and innovative online resources remembering a surgeon whose influence on the field of anatomy is still seen worldwide. Free tours as part of the Heritage Week programme To launch the programme and  virtual exhibition , RCSI held a fas...

RCSI Heritage Collections has been awarded funding from the Heritage Council to celebrate the life and legacy of pioneering Irish surgeon Abraham Colles on the 250th anniversary of his birth in 2023. Abraham Colles (1773-1843) was a surgeon, physician, and anatomist, and a leading figure in the golden age of Irish medicine in the 19th century. He also had a strong connection with RCSI being a past pupil, professor and President of the College. Colles revolutionised the teaching of anatomy in medical schools around the world with the publication of his ground-breaking Treatise on Surgical Anatomy in 1811. This work prompted a radical departure from established approaches to the study of human anatomy and proposed a new model of teaching that lent itself much more readily to the realities of clinical practice for surgeons and physicians in the nineteenth century. This innovative approach to the teaching of anatomy paved the way for new discoveries and fresh observations regarding th...