Jan Bleuland (1756 - 1838)

Jan Bleuland

Jan Bleuland was a Dutch physician, medical scientist, educator and writer.

Bleuland was an intellectually advanced man, a sought-after physician, and a rich lover of the arts. Jan Bleuland taught anatomy, physiology and obstetrics for 31 years and was professor and rector of Utrecht University. His talents as a physician and medical researcher were recognized not only by his patients and the scientific community, but also by the highest authorities.

During his lifetime, Jan Bleuland amassed a large collection of medical specimens of the human body, which he used for research. Part of this significant collection is still on display in the original wooden Bleulandkabinet in the Utrecht University Museum. The Bleulandkabinet contains an extensive collection of skeletons, embryos in alcohol and wax preparations of body parts. His pioneering preparations were acquired by Utrecht University by royal decree of King Willem I in 1815 and are still used as teaching material.