Porta, Luigi

After graduating in Medicine and Surgery at Pavia University, Luigi Porta (Pavia, 1800 – Pavia, 1875) first studied in Vienna and then practiced surgery in Milan. He afterwards returned to Pavia where, under Antonio Scarpa’s guide, he proved himself a tireless worker and a skilled researcher; because of this, in 1832, an extremely young Porta was offered the chair of Anatomy after Scarpa’s demise.

Porta paid particular attention to the study of Anatomy, to which he recognised paramount importance for the new scientific disposition ascribed to surgery.

He was an extremely accurate clinician and was renowned for personally and diligently visiting each patient; in fact, the tens of volumes which group together clinical charts drawn up by Porta himself are a sight to behold.

His scientific field of activity also included angiology, urology, oncology and bone and malformation surgery, as well exemplified by his impressively large collection of anatomical preparations. His collection is now displayed at the Pavia University History Museum.