Francesco Maria Galassi
Dados Biográficos
| ID | 907932 |
|---|---|
| NOME | Francesco Maria Galassi |
| PRENOMES | Francesco Maria |
| SOBRENOME | Galassi |
| ASSINATURA | GALASSI F M |
| AFILIAÇÕES | University of Lodz |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-8902-3142 |
| VERIFICADO | Sim |
| TOTAL DE OBRAS | 35 |
| TOTAL DE CITAÇÕES | 9 |
| TOTAL COMO AUTOR | 35 |
| TOTAL COMO EDITOR | 0 |
| PRIMEIRO ANO DE PUBLICAÇÃO | 2017 |
| ANO MAIS RECENTE DE PUBLICAÇÃO | 2026 |
| ÍNDICE H | 1 |
Digital Facial Approximation of Jebel Irhoud Composite Skull (~315,000 BP)
The archeological site of Jebel Irhoud, Morocco, houses the oldest fossils attributed to Homo sapiens, dated to approximately 315,000 years before present (BP). This study presents a forensic facial approximation based on data from a three-dimensional composite skull derived from Layer 7 of the site, with structural predominance of the Irhoud 1 fossil. The methodology employed open-source software tools, combining anatomical projections and the c…
Forensic Facial Approximation of the Skull Attributed to Wenceslas of Bohemia (ca. 907–935)
This study presents a digital forensic facial approximation of Wenceslas, Duke of Bohemia (ca. 907–935), based on photographs of the skull attributed to the saint, preserved in St. Vitus Cathedral, Prague. The skull was replicated through structural deformation using public domain images, adjusted to historical measurements, and enriched with anthropometric data. The facial approximation combined traditional techniques with statistical projection…
The Death of Emperor Frederick Barbarossa (Ad 1190)
In this case report the stili unexplained death of the Mediaeval Emperor Frederick Barbarossa is examined from a biomedica! perspective using originai historical sources and contemporary medicai knowledge. Barbarossa's case a/so serves as an example and a wake-up callfor public health authorities on the danger represented by the public health problem of drowning, with particular reference to drowning in rivers and whirlpool-caused deaths
The digital facial approximation of Saint Adalbert of Prague (AD 956-997)
The Facial approximation of the controversial skull attributed to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) is considered as one of the greatest composers of the Classical Period of music (ca. 1750-1820). Gifted with an unparalleled precocity, which allowed him to play and compose at the highest levels from a very young age, he continued his studies until the end of his life. Despite his prominent status, he was buried in a collective grave and years later his skull was supposedly recovered, reaching the present day …
The portrait of Márk Baksa
The Facial Approximation of the Skull Attributed to Jan Žižka (ca. AD 1360–1424)
The present study aims to approximate the face from the alleged skull of Jan Žižka (ca. AD 1360–1424), a military commander and national hero in the Czech Republic. Found in 1910, the skull has only a fraction of its original structure, which required an initial effort to reconstruct the missing regions from data collected in CT scans of living people’s heads. The forensic facial approximation consisted of projecting the skin boundaries with soft…
Murine Ceramic Representations in Ancient Sicily (Contrada Santa Anastasia Di Randazzo, 5th Century Bc)
In this article we present a set ofmurine vascular representationsfrom contrada SantaAnastasia (Randazzo, Sicily), dated to the 5th century BC. We offer a full archaeological contextualisation for these items, and we discuss a potential link with the role of epidemics in the past through a combination ofhistorico-medical, palaeopathological and infectivological arguments
Facial approximation of a skull with signs of tertiary syphilis found in the Skriðuklaustur monastery (Iceland, 15th-16th century AD)
The anatomical bases of the 3D digital facial approximation of the Zlatý kůň 1 woman (ca. 43,000 BP)
In 1950 on Mount Zlatý kůň ('Golden Horse') in modern-day Czech Republic a system of caves was discovered. During many years of research in this area, human and animal osteological remains have been excavated, among which the most interesting ones were nine fragments of a female skull, now dated to ca. 43,000 yrs BP which are one of the earliest known anatomically modern humans in Eurasia. The aim of this research was to use purely digital techni…
The presence of Homo in Sicily
This article summarises the main findings and data on the ancient peopling of the Mediterranean island of Sicily through an archaeo-anthropological perspective. The hypothesis surrounding the presence of the Lower Palaeolithic in Sicily with more ancestral species of Homo is also extensively reviewed and it is explained why there are not sufficient elements to maintain it. Finally, future multidisciplinary proposals are made to fill the gap on Si…
Possible future evolutionary consequences to Homo as a result of the implementation of biotechnology
Biotechnology has become one of the most powerful forces on the planet, since it is capable of altering life processes at a molecular level. Since human bodies are dynamic biological systems, medicine requires to understand the evolutionary antecedents of Homo, especially in relation to neurohormonal regulation. Furthermore, increasing human dependence on biotechnology has led to relaxed natural selection in Homo, with subsequent increase of gene…
Holt’s Fourth Porus Chariot-Type Medallion
In this article the authors of an original publication on the so-called Porus medallions of Alexander the Great published a few years ago in the Journal of the Numismatic Association of Australia respond to some criticism addressed at their study by F. Holt in issue 15 of this journal (pp. 13–20). The authors’ rebuttal is based on mathematical principles and textual analysis
Chronic Gastro-Duodenal Ulcerative Disease and the Death of Father Stephan Schätzl from Viechtwang (Austria)
Votive Offerings from Floresti Orthodox Monastery in Romania
Spina Bifida Sacralis Occulta from Ancient Greek Sicily (Pozzanghera Necropolis, Leontinoi, 6th–4th Century BC)
In this article a case of spina bifida sacralis occulta (SBSO) from the Pozzanghera necropolis of the ancient Greek colony of Leontinoi (Sicily) and archaeologically dated to the 6th–4th century BC is morphologically analysed and discussed. An ethnomedical excursus on the knowledge and impact of this condition in Sicilian history is offered. Although SBO is one of the most frequent congenital anomalies in the global palaeopathological record, a c…
Osteoporosis and vertebral trabecular bone health
This brief review article aims to recapitulate the history of osteoporosis from the most ancient observations to the current clinical definition, by offering a perspective on trabecular bone health and degeneration, which has become of paramount important both in clinical, radiological and biological anthropological studies
Ludmila of Bohemia (ca. 860–921)
Morphological and genetic aspects of Marfan Syndrome as demonstrated by a case of death during pregnancy with the discovery of two de novo missense mutations in the FBN1 gene
Marfan Syndrome (MFS) is an autosomal dominant disease caused in most cases by mutations in the FNB1 gene, which encodes for fibrillin 1. MFS does not alway shows typical phenotypic signs. Indeed, the occurrence of sudden death of unknown cause is increasingly seen in young adults without ante mortem preexisting pathology to explain the event. In many cases the diagnosis of Marfan Syndrome (MFS) is carried out post mortem, especially in cases whe…
Interpersonal violence in the Middle Kingdom of Egypt
Klippel-Feil Syndrome
The aim of this study is to show the cranial alterations that Klippel-Feil syndrome produced in a case older than 200 years. Few paleopathological case studies diagnosed as Klippel-Feil Syndrome are focused on cranial abnormalities. A skull numbered 778, belonging to the Federico Olóriz Aguilera collection (Spain, 19th century AD), Universidad Complutense de Madrid, belonging to a young man born in a town in the North of Spain, was investigated. …
Lord Byron (1788–1824) as the Precursor of Celebrities Endorsing Vaccine Hesitancy
Lord Byron can be classified as the prototype of contemporary celebrities endorsing pseudo-scientific views and opposing vaccination policies based on his public statements, while privately he appears to have had double standards since he had his page inoculated against smallpox. Through a review of the biomedical and historical literature this paper examines the role of the example given by celebrities during vaccination campaigns, focusing on t…
The discovery of the Salafia handwritten manuscript and formula. Chronological and biological considerations
Alfredo Salafia (1869-1933) was a famous embalmer from Palermo, Sicily. He created an embalming fluid, the «Perfection fluid», which was supposed to leave the corpse perfectly preserved in a «fresh state». Within the remit of the Human Embalming Project© (H.E.P.), we performed referenced historical research on Salafia’s American period. We further identified what appears to be an anomaly in the chronology of the discovery of the Sicilian embalmer…
A Key Role for Chronology
In this paper we stress the importance of a chronological approach to bioarchaeological and palaeopathological research, illustrating the key value of correct dating in the reconstruction of the history of diseases and civilisations. With this aim in mind, we present five case studies (from prehistoric times to the late Middle Ages) in which either archaeological or radiocarbon dating proved instrumental in answering research questions ranging fr…
Teaching anatomy through images
How medical educators taught anatomy in the past changed throughout the centuries, ranging from dissection to wax modelling. More recently, imaging for teaching purposes has become increasingly crucial to anatomy education. The main focus of this contribution is to present the history of anatomical illustrations from the Middle Ages to our age. Anatomical illustrations are to a certain extent the ancestors of diagnostic images: Guido da Vigevano …
The earliest known Italian case of bilateral non-osseous calcaneonavicular coalition from the mediaeval cemetery of Troina (Enna, Sicily)
The Facial Approximation of the Skull Attributed to Jan Žižka (ca. AD 1360–1424)
The present study aims to approximate the face from the alleged skull of Jan Žižka (ca. AD 1360–1424), a military commander and national hero in the Czech Republic. Found in 1910, the skull has only a fraction of its original structure, which required an initial effort to reconstruct the missing regions from data collected in CT scans of living people’s heads. The forensic facial approximation consisted of projecting the skin boundaries with soft…
The anatomical bases of the 3D digital facial approximation of the Zlatý kůň 1 woman (ca. 43,000 BP)
In 1950 on Mount Zlatý kůň ('Golden Horse') in modern-day Czech Republic a system of caves was discovered. During many years of research in this area, human and animal osteological remains have been excavated, among which the most interesting ones were nine fragments of a female skull, now dated to ca. 43,000 yrs BP which are one of the earliest known anatomically modern humans in Eurasia. The aim of this research was to use purely digital techni…
Ludmila of Bohemia (ca. 860–921)
Interpersonal violence in the Middle Kingdom of Egypt
Klippel-Feil Syndrome
The aim of this study is to show the cranial alterations that Klippel-Feil syndrome produced in a case older than 200 years. Few paleopathological case studies diagnosed as Klippel-Feil Syndrome are focused on cranial abnormalities. A skull numbered 778, belonging to the Federico Olóriz Aguilera collection (Spain, 19th century AD), Universidad Complutense de Madrid, belonging to a young man born in a town in the North of Spain, was investigated. …
Queen Meresankh III – the oldest case of bilateral Silent Sinus Syndrome (c. 2620/10 - 2570 BC)
The silent sinus syndrome is characterized by painless enophthalmia and hypotropia caused by chronic atelectasis of the maxillary sinus with onset in adulthood, typically between the third and the fifth decade of life. It is increasingly diagnosed as a result of today’s widespread use of computed tomography (CT). The phenomenon was originally described in 1964 (Montgomery, 1964), while the term “silent sinus syndrome” was later introduced by Sopa…
A New Astronomically Based Chronological Model for the Egyptian Old Kingdom
A recently discovered inscription on an ancient Egyptian ointment jar mentions the heliacal rising of Sirius. In the time of the early Pharaohs, this specific astronomical event marked the beginning of the Egyptian New Year and originally the annual return of the Nile flood, making it of great ritual importance. Since the Egyptian civil calendar of 365 days permanently shifted one day in four years in comparison to the stars due to the lack of in…
Giovanni Boccaccio's (1313–1375) disease and demise
A New Astronomically Based Chronological Model for the Egyptian Old Kingdom
A recently discovered inscription on an ancient Egyptian ointment jar mentions the heliacal rising of Sirius. In the time of the early Pharaohs, this specific astronomical event marked the beginning of the Egyptian New Year and originally the annual return of the Nile flood, making it of great ritual importance. Since the Egyptian civil calendar of 365 days permanently shifted one day in four years in comparison to the stars due to the lack of in…
Autopsing history
Queen Meresankh III – the oldest case of bilateral Silent Sinus Syndrome (c. 2620/10 - 2570 BC)
The silent sinus syndrome is characterized by painless enophthalmia and hypotropia caused by chronic atelectasis of the maxillary sinus with onset in adulthood, typically between the third and the fifth decade of life. It is increasingly diagnosed as a result of today’s widespread use of computed tomography (CT). The phenomenon was originally described in 1964 (Montgomery, 1964), while the term “silent sinus syndrome” was later introduced by Sopa…
Pope Leo XII’s death
1829 after a short illness, particularly struck the public. Suspicions of poisoning or surgeon's guilt or inexperience and even the shadow of a venereal disease, contributed to create a "black legend" on his pontificate and death. On the contrary, the present paleopathographic analysis points toward a new conclusion. The regular use of catheterization with a silver syringe provided an easy access for bacterial superinfection, confirmed by the obs…
Gluten consumption may contribute to worldwide obesity prevalence
Gluten consumption has been controversially associated with obesity in previous studies. We sought to examine this association at the worldwide level. Country specific data were obtained from 168 countries. Scatter plots, bivariate, partial correlation and multiple linear regression models were used to explore and compare the coincidence between obesity prevalence and consumption of gluten, non-gluten cereal protein and total cereal protein respe…
Lord Byron (1788–1824) as the Precursor of Celebrities Endorsing Vaccine Hesitancy
Lord Byron can be classified as the prototype of contemporary celebrities endorsing pseudo-scientific views and opposing vaccination policies based on his public statements, while privately he appears to have had double standards since he had his page inoculated against smallpox. Through a review of the biomedical and historical literature this paper examines the role of the example given by celebrities during vaccination campaigns, focusing on t…
The discovery of the Salafia handwritten manuscript and formula. Chronological and biological considerations
Alfredo Salafia (1869-1933) was a famous embalmer from Palermo, Sicily. He created an embalming fluid, the «Perfection fluid», which was supposed to leave the corpse perfectly preserved in a «fresh state». Within the remit of the Human Embalming Project© (H.E.P.), we performed referenced historical research on Salafia’s American period. We further identified what appears to be an anomaly in the chronology of the discovery of the Sicilian embalmer…
A Key Role for Chronology
In this paper we stress the importance of a chronological approach to bioarchaeological and palaeopathological research, illustrating the key value of correct dating in the reconstruction of the history of diseases and civilisations. With this aim in mind, we present five case studies (from prehistoric times to the late Middle Ages) in which either archaeological or radiocarbon dating proved instrumental in answering research questions ranging fr…
Teaching anatomy through images
How medical educators taught anatomy in the past changed throughout the centuries, ranging from dissection to wax modelling. More recently, imaging for teaching purposes has become increasingly crucial to anatomy education. The main focus of this contribution is to present the history of anatomical illustrations from the Middle Ages to our age. Anatomical illustrations are to a certain extent the ancestors of diagnostic images: Guido da Vigevano …
The Alleged Shoes of Michelangelo Buonarroti
Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475–1564) is regarded as one of the fundamental figures of the Italian Renaissance. Several hypotheses have been made on his health ranging from goiter to lead poisoning (Lazzeri et al. 2016a, Montes-Santiago 2013)
King Ariarathes Iv of Cappadocia (220–163 Bc)'s Impotence in the Light of Thyroid Disease
For a long time historical research dismissed the account about King Ariarathes IV of Cappadocia’s (reigned 220-163 BC) wife being unable to produce an offspring just as a defamatory explanation concocted by later writers to cover subtler political moves. Having palaeopathologically re-examined the biographical record of King Ariarathes IV in the light of a recently proposed diagnosis of thyroid goiter, by multidisciplinarily combining literary a…
The Presumed Skull of Athalaric, King of the Ostrogoths (Ad 516–534)
The "Luigi Cattaneo" Museum of Anatomical Waxes of the University of Bologna houses a skull (Figure 1a, 3D virtual reconstruction Figure 1d) labelled as Skull of Athalaric, King of the Ostrogoths (Cranio di Atalarico, Re degli Ostrogoti), which represents the object of the present analysis, aimed at assessing the genuineness of the attribution as well as the health status of this individual. To achieve this goal, a multidisciplinary approach incl…
The earliest known Italian case of bilateral non-osseous calcaneonavicular coalition from the mediaeval cemetery of Troina (Enna, Sicily)
Interpersonal violence in the Middle Kingdom of Egypt
Klippel-Feil Syndrome
The aim of this study is to show the cranial alterations that Klippel-Feil syndrome produced in a case older than 200 years. Few paleopathological case studies diagnosed as Klippel-Feil Syndrome are focused on cranial abnormalities. A skull numbered 778, belonging to the Federico Olóriz Aguilera collection (Spain, 19th century AD), Universidad Complutense de Madrid, belonging to a young man born in a town in the North of Spain, was investigated. …
Holt’s Fourth Porus Chariot-Type Medallion
In this article the authors of an original publication on the so-called Porus medallions of Alexander the Great published a few years ago in the Journal of the Numismatic Association of Australia respond to some criticism addressed at their study by F. Holt in issue 15 of this journal (pp. 13–20). The authors’ rebuttal is based on mathematical principles and textual analysis
Chronic Gastro-Duodenal Ulcerative Disease and the Death of Father Stephan Schätzl from Viechtwang (Austria)
Votive Offerings from Floresti Orthodox Monastery in Romania
Spina Bifida Sacralis Occulta from Ancient Greek Sicily (Pozzanghera Necropolis, Leontinoi, 6th–4th Century BC)
In this article a case of spina bifida sacralis occulta (SBSO) from the Pozzanghera necropolis of the ancient Greek colony of Leontinoi (Sicily) and archaeologically dated to the 6th–4th century BC is morphologically analysed and discussed. An ethnomedical excursus on the knowledge and impact of this condition in Sicilian history is offered. Although SBO is one of the most frequent congenital anomalies in the global palaeopathological record, a c…
Osteoporosis and vertebral trabecular bone health
This brief review article aims to recapitulate the history of osteoporosis from the most ancient observations to the current clinical definition, by offering a perspective on trabecular bone health and degeneration, which has become of paramount important both in clinical, radiological and biological anthropological studies
Ludmila of Bohemia (ca. 860–921)
Morphological and genetic aspects of Marfan Syndrome as demonstrated by a case of death during pregnancy with the discovery of two de novo missense mutations in the FBN1 gene
Marfan Syndrome (MFS) is an autosomal dominant disease caused in most cases by mutations in the FNB1 gene, which encodes for fibrillin 1. MFS does not alway shows typical phenotypic signs. Indeed, the occurrence of sudden death of unknown cause is increasingly seen in young adults without ante mortem preexisting pathology to explain the event. In many cases the diagnosis of Marfan Syndrome (MFS) is carried out post mortem, especially in cases whe…
The portrait of Márk Baksa
The Facial Approximation of the Skull Attributed to Jan Žižka (ca. AD 1360–1424)
The present study aims to approximate the face from the alleged skull of Jan Žižka (ca. AD 1360–1424), a military commander and national hero in the Czech Republic. Found in 1910, the skull has only a fraction of its original structure, which required an initial effort to reconstruct the missing regions from data collected in CT scans of living people’s heads. The forensic facial approximation consisted of projecting the skin boundaries with soft…
Medicine (22 obras) · History (17 obras) · Forensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology Studies (13 obras) · Ancient history (12 obras) · Archaeology (12 obras) · Art (11 obras) · Skull (9 obras) · Anatomy (8 obras) · Geography (8 obras) · Paleopathology and ancient diseases (8 obras)