A man with little formal education, John Hunter rose to become one of the most eminent and influential surgeons of his time. He was born in Long Calderwood, Lanarkshire, Scotland, the youngest of ten children. After his father died in 1741, Hunter left school and worked on the family farm and as a cabinetmaker. In 1748 Hunter joined his brother, William (1718-1783), an anatomist in London, England. Hunter's skill in preparing specimens for his brother's anatomy lectures was so impressive that he became William's assistant. William also arranged for Hunter to study surgery at Chelsea and St. Bartholomew's Hospitals. The younger Hunter became a master of anatomy in 1753. In 1755 William sent Hunter to Oxford to acquire a formal education; however, academics held no interest for the young man. He returned to London within two months to resume his dissection work with William and his own original experimentation. He gathered his...