A manual of cheirosophy : being a complete practical handbook of the twin sciences of cheirognomy and cheiromancy, by means whereof the past, the present, and the future may be read in the formations of the hands ; preceded by an introductory argument upon the science of cheirosophy and its claims to rank as a physical science / by Ed. Heron-Allen ; with full-page and other illustrations by Rosamund Brunel Horsley.

Date:
1885
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A manual of cheirosophy : being a complete practical handbook of the twin sciences of cheirognomy and cheiromancy, by means whereof the past, the present, and the future may be read in the formations of the hands ; preceded by an introductory argument upon the science of cheirosophy and its claims to rank as a physical science / by Ed. Heron-Allen ; with full-page and other illustrations by Rosamund Brunel Horsley. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. The original may be consulted at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh.

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    If 45. Touch and temperature. t46. The skin. Its composition. without the sense of touch.And the sense of touch does not only determine size, shape, and pressure ; it alone of all the senses can appreciate differences of temperature, heat and cold. The two great senses, therefore, which reside in the skin, are those of touch and of temperature. In touching a body we employ the organs best adapted for the purpose, namely the hands; and we can re- cognise the object touched with closed eyes, with more or less certainty; in the hands this power is very perfect, and is the more perfect the nearer we approach to the tips of the fingers, where the skin is the most sensitive.®^ The skin itself consists of three layers. Upon the cellular tissue under the skin lies the first skin [or dermis\, which is of a tolerably compact nature. Its surface consists of a greater or less number of cylindrical or conical protuberances, which are called papillce. Upon the dermis lies the mucous layer, which consists of a great number of small microscopic cells. Aristotle, HEPI TA Z12A'IST0PI0N, BipX. A'., Ke0. ■^.;— “ EtVf S' oi (aftr0T}(rets) TrXeiffrai rai irap oiiSefa paLverai l'5cos erepa, Trivre rhv dpidp-bv, 6pis, cLKop, 6<Tppr)<Ti^, yeuais, app. . . . ’Ou yap 6p,dlws irdaiv mApyovcnv, (^alad-qcreLs) dWd rois p.iv wacrat Tols d’eXaTTOvs. Tpv 5b Trbp.Trrt]v ai<rOT}(nv rijv dppv Ka\ovp.tvr)v Kal r’dWa Trdvr’ “ nScrt 5b tols ^ipois diadtjais p.ia STrdpxet koiut] p.6vrj rj dpp Pare Kal bv <3 (avT-p) p.opt(p ylveadai wbpvKev dvPvvpLov bariv.” B(/3X. A'., y'. And the parallel passage of Cuvier runs :—“ Lesens exterieur le plus general est le toucher, son siege est a la peau, membrane enveloppant le corps entier. . . . Beaucoup d’animaux manquent d’oreilles et de narines ; plusieurs d’yeux : il y en a qui sont reduits au toucher lequel ne manque ja7)iais.''—G. Cuvier, “ Le Regne Animal distribue d’apres son organization” (Paris, 1828). To those of my readers who desire to go deeper into the relationship between the sense of Touch and the hand, I would recommend Dr. Arthur Kollmann’s work “Der Tast-apparat der Hand der menschlichen Rassen und der Afifen in seiner Entwicke- lung und Gliederung ” (Hamburg und Leipzig, L. Voss ; 1883).