Planches - Prints and Diagrams

            I won’t be able to post my extensive observations of the planches until next week, but I wanted to give just a little preview of what is to come. Recall that of L'Encyclopédie's 28 volumes, 11 of them are planches, which are prints of diagrams of things included in the text of the encyclopedia. 
            These images are from the first planche, which encompasses everything from agriculture to “maçonnerie,” or masonry.
            First, here are two of the many anatomy plates from the first planche, one of the circulatory system and one of the brain. I would be interested to know what modern medical experts would have to say about these figures!
            The plate further below is a diagram of a "pressoir à cidre," or a cider press. In the table of contents of this planche, the authors explain that the plates for the cider press depict the "instructions for pressing cider...[and] the details of the work" needed to do so.