| Authorised form of name | Lower; Richard (1631 - 1691); physician and physiologist |
| Dates | 1631 - 1691 |
| Nationality | British |
| Place of birth | Tremeer, near Bodmin, Cornwall, England, Europe |
| Date of birth | 1631 |
| Place of death | King Street, London, England, Europe |
| Date of death | 17 January 1691 |
| DatesAndPlaces | Baptism:
St Tudy's, Cornwall, England, Europe (29 January 1632)
Burial:
St Tudy's, Cornwall, England, Europe (3 February 1691) |
| Occupation | Physician |
| Research field | Medicine |
| Physiology |
| Activity | Education:
Westminster School; Christ Church, Oxford (BA 1653; MA 1655; MB; MD 1665)
Career:
Studied Chemistry with Peter Stahl in Oxford and assisted Thomas Willis (FRS 1663) in his anatomical researches on the nervous system (1655-1665); practised in London; performed experimental blood transfusions on dogs and, eventually, on a man
|
| Membership category | Fellow |
| Date of election | 17/10/1667 |
| Proposer | Seth Ward |
| Date of ejection or withdrawal | 18 November 1675 |
| Other Royal Society activity | Published the results of blood transfusion experiments in the 'Philosophical Transactions' (1660s); Ejected for 'not performing their obligation to the Society' |
| Relationships | Parents: Humphrey Lower and Margery Billing
Married: Elizabeth Trelawny (née Billing) |
| PublishedWorks | RCN: 51195
RCN: 51196
RCN: 19630 |
| OtherInfo | Whilst at Oxford, Lower was part of a circle of fellow natural philosophers and physicians, such as Thomas Willis (FRS 1663), Robert Boyle (FRS 1663) and Christopher Wren (FRS 1660). From here, Lower became a highly respected physiologist and anatomist. His good reputation as a medical practitioner afforded him royal appointments as well, although he did not continue as royal physician under James II due to the latter's catholicism. One of Lower's most important works is his 'Tractatus de code' on his physiological research, in particuar into blood transfusion. |
| Source | Sources:
Bulloch's Roll; DNB; DSB; Foster; Hunter; ODNB
References:
Da Costa Andrade, E N. 1965. 'The Birth and Early Days of the Philosophical Transactions', in Notes and Records, vol. 20, pp. 9-27
Hall, A R and Hall, M B. 1968. 'The Intellectual Origins of the Royal Society - London and Oxford', in Notes and Records, vol. 23, pp. 157-168
Symonds, Sir C. 1960. 'Thomas Willis, FRS (1621-1675)', in Notes and Records, vol. 15, pp. 91-97
Underwood, T L. 1976-7. 'Quakers and the Royal Society of London in the Seventeenth Century', in Notes and Records, vol. 31, pp. 133-150
Notes:
DNB says he left the Society in 1678 (cf Birch, vol 3, pp 224 and 231). |
| Virtual International Authority File | http://viaf.org/viaf/30474615 |
| Code | NA6102 |