1631-1687

Danish Anatomist, Naturalist, and Physician

Nicolaus Steno was one of the great scientists of the seventeenth century. Best known today for his views on fossils and as the founder of stratigraphy, he was trained as a physician and did important work in anatomy, crystallography, geology, and paleontology.

Steno, whose real name was Niels Steensen (sometimes spelled Stensen), was born on January 1, 1631, in Copenhagen, Denmark. Raised a devout Lutheran, he entered the University of Copenhagen in 1656 to study medicine. He continued his studies at the University of Leiden (1660-1663), receiving his M.D. in absentia while in Paris (1664). After making important anatomical discoveries he traveled to Italy, where in 1666 he was appointed court physician to Ferdinand II, Grand Duke of Tuscany (1610-1670). His most significant geological and paleontological results were developed during his stay in Florence. He converted to Catholicism in 1667 and returned to Copenhagen in...