Willem ten Rhijne (1649-1700), the distinguished Dutch physician was sent by the Dutch East India Company to the tiny island of Deshima off the Japanese coast at Nagasaki. Here he published the earliest Western descriptions of acupuncture in his book Dissertatio de arthritide: Mantissa schematica: de Acupunctura. He made detailed descriptions of Japanese and Chinese medical practice and described how acupuncture alleviated various disorders. The chart shows a Japanese figure with channels and points for the application of acupuncture and moxa, viewed from the front of the body.

Latin, printed by R. Chiswell, London; dated 1683.
Wellcome EPB 43818/B/1, page 165, fig. 5. (Image no: L22388)