The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Columbia Encyclopedia World Factbook American Heritage Coll.
Comparative anatomy is concerned with the structural differences of plant and animal forms.
The study of similarities and differences in anatomical structures forms the basis for classification of both plants and animals. Related to anatomy is morphology, which involves comparative study of the corresponding organs in humans and animals. Little was known about human anatomy in ancient times because dissection, even of corpses, was widely forbidden. In the 2d cent. His work remained authoritative until the 14th and 15th cent.