Nicolaes Tulp in The Hague. Tulp is buried in the New Church of Amsterdam. Joost van den Vondel, a period poet, wrote several verses about Tulp. Besides the famous painting by Rembrandt there are more paintings and marble and bronze statues of him. The Holstein painter Jurriaen Ovens painted him twice, as his son and daughter. Also Artus Quellijn made a portrait. Nicolaes Tulp Nicolaes Tulp (9 October 1593 – 12 September 1674) was a Dutch surgeon and mayor of Amsterdam. Tulp was well known for his upstanding moral character and as the subject of Rembrandt's famous painting "The Anatomy Lesson of
History of anatomy research. Only certified anatomists were allowed to perform dissections, and sometimes then only yearly. These dissections were sponsored by the city councilors and often charged an admission fee, rather like a circus act for scholars. Many European cities, such as Amsterdam, London, Copenhagen, Padua, and Paris, all had Royal anatomists (or some such office) tied to local government. Indeed, Nicolaes Tulp was Mayor of Amsterdam for three terms. Though it was a risky business to perform dissections, and unpredictable depending on the availability of fresh bodies, "attending" dissections was legal. The supply of printed anatomy books from Italy and France