Editing Nicolas Steno

{{short description|Danish scientist and Catholic bishop (1638 – 1686)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox Christian leader
 | type              = 
 | honorific-prefix  = [[Beatification|Blessed]]
 | name              = Niels Steensen
 | honorific-suffix  = 
 | title             = [[Apostolic Vicariate of Northern Germany|Vicar Apostolic of Nordic Missions]]
 | image             = Niels stensen.png
 | image_size        = 250px
 | alt               = Portrait of Steno as bishop (1868)
 | caption           = Portrait of Steno as bishop (1868)
 | church            = <!--THE PHYSICAL CHURCH WHERE HIS THRONE WAS NOT DENOMINATION-->
 | archdiocese       = 
 | province          = 
 | metropolis        = 
 | diocese           = 
 | see               = [[Titiopolis]]
 | elected           = 
 | appointed         = 21 August 1677 <br />by [[Pope Innocent XI]]
 | term              = 
 | term_start        = 
 | quashed           = 
 | term_end          = 25 November 1686
 | predecessor       = [[Valerio Maccioni]]<!-- NORDIC MISSIONS-->
 | opposed           = 
 | successor         = [[Friedrich von Tietzen]]{{efn|Friedrich von Tietzen, called Schlüter (1626–1696).<ref>{{cite book|last=Janker|first=Stephan M.|title=Die Bischöfe des Heiligen Römischen Reiches : ein biographisches Lexikon|year=1990|publisher=Duncker und Humblot|location=Berlin|isbn=978-3-428-06763-3|page=516|language=de}}</ref>}}<!-- NORDIC MISSIONS-->
 | previous_post     = <!--IF HE WAS NOT IN OFFICE AT DEATH IT IS PREVIOUS NOT OTHER POST-->{{unbulleted list|[[Roman Catholic Diocese of Münster|Auxiliary Bishop of Münster]] (1680–1683)}}
 | other_post        = Titular Bishop of Titiopolis
<!---------- Orders ---------->
 | ordination        = 13 April 1675{{sfnp|Kermit|2002|p=19}}
 | ordinated_by      = 
 | consecration      = 19 September 1677
 | consecrated_by    = <!--SHORT NAME USED BY THE HOLY SEE FOR HIS CANONIZATION-->Saint [[Gregorio Barbarigo]]{{sfnp|Miniati|2009|loc=Note 26, page 77.}}<ref>{{cite web|title=Canonizzazione di S. Gregorio Barbarigo|url=https://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_xxiii/homilies/1960/documents/hf_j-xxiii_hom_19600526_it.html|work=Homily of His Holiness Pope John XXIII|access-date=14 January 2012|author=Pope John XXIII|author-link=Pope John XXIII|location=Holy See|date=26 May 1960|language=it}}</ref>
 | cardinal          = 
 | rank              = <!-- THIS IS FOR CARDINALS -->
<!---------- Personal details ---------->
 | birth_name        = Niels Steensen
 | birth_date        = <!--PLEASE DO NOT CHANGE PRIMARY DOB TO 11 January, SEE ARTICLE ON ISAAC NEWTON FOR OS/NS GUIDELINE-->{{Birth date|1638|1|1|df=y}}<br /><small>{{Bracket|[[Adoption of the Gregorian calendar|NS]]: 11 January 1638}}</small>
 | birth_place       = [[Copenhagen]], [[Denmark-Norway]]
 | death_date        = {{Death date and age|1686|11|25|1638|1|1|df=y}}<br /><small>{{Bracket|[[Adoption of the Gregorian calendar|NS]]: 5 December 1686}}</small>
 | death_place       = [[Schwerin]], [[Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin]]
 | buried            = [[Basilica of San Lorenzo, Florence|Basilica of San Lorenzo]], [[Florence]], [[Duchy of Florence]]
 | nationality       = Danish
 | religion          = Lutheran (1638-1667), Roman Catholic (1667-1686)
 | residence         = 
 | parents           = {{unbulleted list|Father: Steen Pedersen{{sfnp|Garrett Winter|1916|p=184.}}
|Mother: Anne Nielsdatter{{sfnp|Cutler|2003}}}}
 | spouse            = 
 | children          = 
 | occupation        = {{unbulleted list|Scientist: [[anatomy]], [[paleontology]], [[stratigraphy]], geology|Bishop: Apostolic Vicar for Scandinavia and Northern Germany}}
 | profession        = 
 | alma_mater        = 
 | motto             = 
 | signature         = 
 | signature_alt     = 
 | coat_of_arms      = Coat of arms of Nicolas Steno.svg
 | coat_of_arms_alt  = Coat of arms of Bishop Nicolas Steno. The cross symbolizes faith and the heart, the natural sciences.
<!---------- Sainthood ---------->
 | feast_day         =5 December
 | venerated         = Roman Catholic Church (Denmark & Germany)
 | saint_title       = Bishop
 | beatified_date    = 23 October 1988
 | beatified_place   = [[Vatican City]],
 | beatified_by      = [[Pope John Paul II]]
 | canonized_date    = 
 | canonized_place   = 
 | canonized_by      = 
 | attributes        = 
 | patronage         = 
 | shrine            = 
 | suppressed_date   = 
<!---------- Other ---------->
 | other             = 
}}

'''Niels Steensen''' ({{langx|da|Niels Steensen}}; [[Latinization (literature)|Latinized]] to '''Nicolas Steno'''{{efn|Steno took his surname from his father's given name. In accordance with the academic customs of his time, Nicolas latinized the Danish form of his name Niels Ste(e)nsen as Nicolaus Stenonis. The English form, ''Steno'', is due to an error in parsing the Latin.}} or '''Nicolaus Stenonius''';{{efn|Also known as Nikolaus or Nils Steensen, Stens.{{sfnp|Scherz|2002}}}}{{sfnp|Garrett Winter|1916|p=175}} <!--PLEASE DO NOT CHANGE PRIMARY DOB TO 11 January, SEE ARTICLE https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adoption_of_the_Gregorian_calendarON ISAAC NEWTON FOR OS/NS GUIDELINE-->1 January 1638&nbsp;– 25 November 1686{{sfnp|Hansen|1912}}<ref name="JS Aber">{{cite web |url=http://academic.emporia.edu/aberjame/histgeol/steno/steno.htm |title=History of Geology{{snd}} Steno | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170128152818/http://academic.emporia.edu/aberjame/histgeol/steno/steno.htm |archive-date=28 January 2017 |url-status=dead |last=Aber |first=James S. |date=2007 |access-date=11 January 2012}}</ref> {{smaller|<nowiki>[</nowiki>[[Adoption of the Gregorian calendar|NS]]: 11 January 1638 – 5 December 1686]{{sfnp|Hansen|1912}}}}) was a [[Danish people|Danish]] [[scientist]], a pioneer in both [[anatomy]] and [[geology]] who became a [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] bishop in his later years. He has been [[beatified]] by the Catholic Church.

Steensen was trained in the classical texts on science; however, by 1659 he seriously questioned accepted knowledge of the natural world.{{sfnp|Kooijmans|2007}} Importantly he questioned explanations for tear production, the idea that fossils grew in the ground and explanations of rock formation. His investigations and his subsequent conclusions on fossils and rock formation have led scholars to consider him one of the founders of modern [[stratigraphy]] and modern geology.{{sfnp|Wyse Jackson|2007}}{{sfnp|Woods|2005|pp=4, 96}} The importance of Steensen's foundational contributions to geology may be gauged from the fact that half of the twenty papers in a recent miscellany volume on ''The Revolution in Geology from the Renaissance to the Enlightenment'' focus on Steensen, the "preeminent Baroque [[polymath]] and founder of modern geologic thought".<ref>Gary D. Rosenberg (ed.), ''The Revolution in Geology from the Renaissance to the Enlightenment'' (''Geological Society of America Memoir'' 203) (Boulder, Colorado, 2009), p. vii.</ref>

Born to a [[Lutheranism|Lutheran]] family, Steensen converted to Catholicism in 1667. After his conversion, his interest in the natural sciences rapidly waned giving way to his interest in theology.{{sfnp|Garrett Winter|1916|pp=180, 182}} At the beginning of 1675, he decided to become a priest. Four months later, he was [[Priesthood (Catholic Church)|ordained]] in the Catholic clergy on Easter Sunday in 1675. As a clergyman, he was later appointed [[Apostolic Vicariate of Northern Germany|Vicar Apostolic of Nordic Missions]] and [[Titopolis|Titular Bishop of Titopolis]] by [[Pope Innocent XI]]. Steensen played an active role in the [[Counter-Reformation]] in Northern Germany.

His [[canonization]] process began in 1938 and [[Pope John Paul II]] [[beatification|beatified]] Steensen in 1988.<ref>{{cite web|title=Beatifications By Pope John Paul II, 1979–2000|url=https://www.vatican.va/news_services/liturgy/saints/ns_lit_doc_list_blesseds-jp-ii_en.html|publisher=Holy See|access-date=11 January 2012|author=Office Of Papal Liturgical Celebrations}}</ref>

== Early life and career ==
[[File:Portrait of Nicolas Stenonus.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Portrait of Niels Steensen (1666–1677). Unsigned but attributed to court painter [[Justus Sustermans]]. ([[Uffizi Gallery]], Florence, Italy).{{sfnp|Hansen|2009|p=161}}]]
Niels Steensen was born in [[Copenhagen]] on New Year's Day 1638 ([[Julian calendar]]), the son of a [[Lutheran]] [[goldsmith]] who worked regularly for King [[Christian IV of Denmark]]. He became ill at age three, suffering from an unknown disease, and grew up in isolation during his childhood. In 1644 his father died, after which his mother married another goldsmith. In 1654–1655, 240 pupils of his school died due to the [[Black Death|plague]]. Across the street lived [[Peder Griffenfeld|Peder Schumacher]] (who would offer Steensen a post as professor in Copenhagen in 1671). At the age of 19, Steensen entered the [[University of Copenhagen]] to pursue medical studies.{{sfnp|Kermit|2002}} After completing his university education, Steensen set out to travel through Europe; in fact, he would be on the move for the rest of his life. In the Netherlands, France, Italy and Germany he came into contact with prominent physicians and scientists. These influences led him to use his own powers of observation to make important scientific discoveries.

At the urging of [[Thomas Bartholin]], Steensen first travelled to [[Rostock]], then to [[Amsterdam]], where he studied anatomy under and lodged with [[Gerard Blasius]], focusing on the [[lymphatic system]]. Within a few months Steensen moved to Leiden, where he met the students [[Jan Swammerdam]], [[Frederik Ruysch]], [[Reinier de Graaf]], [[Franciscus Sylvius|Franciscus de le Boe Sylvius]], a famous professor, and [[Baruch Spinoza]].{{sfnp|Kooijmans|2004|p=53}}{{sfnp|Kooijmans|2004}} Steensen doubted [[René Descartes|Descartes's]] recently published explanation of the origin of tears<ref>{{cite web|last= René|first= Descartes|title= The Origin of Tears|url= http://www.earlymoderntexts.com/pdf/descpass.pdf|work= The Passions of the Soul|publisher= Jonathan Bennett|access-date= 11 January 2012}}</ref> as produced by the brain. Invited to Paris by [[Henri Louis Habert de Montmor]] and [[Pierre Bourdelot]], he there met [[Ole Borch]] and [[Melchisédech Thévenot]] who were interested in new research and in demonstrations of his skills. In 1665 Steensen travelled to [[Saumur]], Bordeaux and [[Montpellier]], where he met [[Martin Lister]] and [[William Croone]], who introduced Steensen's work to the [[Royal Society]].

After travelling through France, he settled in Italy in 1666 – at first as professor of anatomy at the [[University of Padua]] and then in Florence as in-house physician of [[Ferdinando II de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany|Grand Duke of Tuscany Ferdinando II de' Medici]], who supported arts and science and whom Steensen had met in [[Pisa]].{{sfnp|Chisholm|1911}} Steensen was invited to live in the [[Palazzo Vecchio]]; in return he had to gather a [[cabinet of curiosities]]. Steensen went to Rome and met [[Pope Alexander VII]] and [[Marcello Malpighi]], whom he admired. On his way back he watched a [[Corpus Christi (feast)|Corpus Christi]] procession in [[Livorno]] and wondered if he had the right belief.<ref>Kooijmans, L. (2007) Gevaarlijke kennis, p. 99-100.</ref>

== Scientific contributions ==

=== Anatomy ===
During his stay in Amsterdam, Steensen discovered a previously undescribed structure, the "''[[Parotid duct|ductus Stenonis]]''" (the duct of the [[Parotid gland|parotid salivary gland]]) in sheep, dog and rabbit heads. A dispute with Blasius over credit for the discovery arose, but Steensen's name remained associated with this structure known today as the [[parotid duct|Stensen's duct]].{{sfnp|Kermit|2003}} In Leiden, Steensen studied the boiled [[heart]] of a cow, and determined that it was an ordinary [[muscle]].{{sfnp|Tubbs et al.|2010}}{{sfnp|Andrault|2010}} and not the center of warmth as [[Galenus]] and Descartes believed.<ref>Kooijmans (2007), p. 45.</ref> In [[Florence]], Steensen focused on the [[muscular system]] and the nature of [[muscle contraction]]. He became a member of [[Accademia del Cimento]] and had long discussions with [[Francesco Redi]]. Like [[Vincenzo Viviani]], Steensen proposed a geometrical model of muscles to show that a contracting muscle changes its shape but not its [[volume]].{{sfnp|Kardel|1990}}{{sfnp|Kardel|1994|p=1}}
{{clear left}} Steensen was the first to describe the [[lateral line]] system in fish.{{citation needed|date=February 2024}}

=== Paleontology ===
{{See also|History of paleontology}}
[[File:Steensen - Elementorum myologiae specimen, 1669 - 4715289.tif|thumb|upright|''Elementorum myologiae specimen'': Illustration from Steensen's 1667 paper comparing the teeth of a shark head with a fossil tooth.]]
In October 1666, two fishermen caught a huge female [[shark]] near the town of [[Livorno]], and [[Ferdinando II de' Medici]], Grand Duke of Tuscany, ordered its head to be sent to Steensen. Steensen [[dissection|dissected]] the head and published his findings in 1667. He noted that the [[Shark tooth|shark's teeth]] bore a striking resemblance to certain stony objects, found embedded within rock formations, that his learned contemporaries were calling ''glossopetrae'' or "tongue stones". Ancient authorities, such as the [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] author [[Pliny the Elder]], in his ''[[Natural History (Pliny)|Naturalis Historia]]'', had suggested that these stones fell from the sky or from the [[Moon]]. Others were of the opinion, also following ancient authors, that [[fossil]]s naturally grew in the rocks. Steensen's contemporary [[Athanasius Kircher]], for example, attributed fossils to a "lapidifying virtue diffused through the whole body of the geocosm", considered an inherent characteristic of the earth – an [[Aristotelianism|Aristotelian]] approach. [[Fabio Colonna]], however, had already shown by burning the material to show that ''glossopetrae'' were organic matter (limestone) rather than soil minerals,<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20070318025357/http://www.musei.unina.it/Paleontologia/3.2.3.htm Breve storia della paleontologia], internet site of Centro dei Musei di Scienze Naturali, university of Naples Retrieved 10 January 2012.</ref> in his treatise ''De glossopetris dissertatio'' published in 1616.{{sfnp|Abbona|2002|loc=Geologia |ps=: Colonna had been schooled in the collection of [[Ferrante Imperato]], apothecary and ''virtuoso'' of Naples, who published his natural history notes in 1599.}}<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1080/08912963.2013.825257|title='The vain speculation disillusioned by the sense': The Italian painter Agostino Scilla (1629–1700) called 'The Discoloured', and the correct interpretation of fossils as 'lithified organisms' that once lived in the sea|journal=Historical Biology|volume=26|issue=5|pages=631–651|year=2014|last1=Romano|first1=Marco|bibcode=2014HBio...26..631R |s2cid=129381561}}</ref> Steensen added to Colonna's theory a discussion on the differences in composition between glossopetrae and living sharks' teeth, arguing that the chemical composition of fossils could be altered without changing their form, using the contemporary [[Corpuscularianism|corpuscular theory of matter]].

Steensen's work on shark teeth led him to the question of how any solid object could come to be found inside another solid object, such as a rock or a layer of rock. The "solid bodies within solids" that attracted Steensen's interest included not only fossils, as we would define them today, but minerals, crystals, encrustations, veins, and even entire rock layers or [[stratum|strata]]. He published his geologic studies in ''De solido intra solidum naturaliter contento dissertationis prodromus'', or ''Preliminary discourse to a dissertation on a solid body naturally contained within a solid'' in 1669. This book was his last scientific work of note.{{sfnp|Garrett Winter|1916|p=182}}{{efn|[[Leibnitz]] came to know and esteem Steensen in Hannover and expressed deep regrets that he had abandoned his earlier studies.{{sfnp|Garrett Winter|1916|p=182.}} }} Steensen was not the first to identify fossils as being from living organisms; his contemporary [[Robert Hooke]] also argued that fossils were the remains of once-living organisms.<ref>{{cite book|last=Rudwick|first=Martin J.S.|author-link=Martin J. S. Rudwick|title=The Meaning of Fossils|year=1976|publisher=The University of Chicago Press|page=54}}</ref>

=== Geology and stratigraphy ===
[[File:Steno De Solido Dissertationis Prodromus 1669.jpg|thumb|upright|''De solido intra solidum naturaliter contento dissertationis prodromus'' (1669)]]
{{Main|law of superposition|principle of original horizontality|principle of lateral continuity}}
Steensen, in his ''Dissertationis prodromus'' of 1669 is credited with four of the defining principles of the science of [[stratigraphy]]. His words were:
# the [[law of superposition]]: "At the time when a given stratum was being formed, there was beneath it another substance which prevented the further descent of the comminuted matter and so at the time when the lowest stratum was being formed either another solid substance was beneath it, or if some fluid existed there, then it was not only of a different character from the upper fluid, but also heavier than the solid sediment of the upper fluid."
# the [[principle of original horizontality]]: "At the time when one of the upper strata was being formed, the lower stratum had already gained the consistency of a solid."
# the [[principle of lateral continuity]]: "At the time when any given stratum was being formed it was either encompassed on its sides by another solid substance, or it covered the entire spherical surface of the earth. Hence it follows that in whatever place the bared sides of the strata are seen, either a continuation of the same strata must be sought, or another solid substance must be found which kept the matter of the strata from dispersion."
# the [[principle of cross-cutting relationships]]: "If a body or discontinuity cuts across a stratum, it must have formed after that stratum."<ref>{{cite book |last=Steno |first=Nicolas |url=https://archive.org/details/cu31924012131458 |title=Nicolas Steno's Dissertation Concerning a Solid Body Enclosed by Process of Nature within a Solid: An English Version with an Introduction and Explanatory Notes |date=1916 |publisher=New York, Macmillan; London, Macmillan |translator-last1=Winter |translator-first1=John}} Pages 229–230.</ref>
These principles were applied and extended in 1772 by [[Jean-Baptiste L. Romé de l'Isle]]. Steensen's ideas still form the basis of stratigraphy and were key in the development of [[James Hutton]]'s theory of [[James Hutton#Search for evidence|infinitely repeating cycles]] of seabed deposition, uplifting, erosion, and submersion.{{sfnp|Brookfield|2004|p=116}}

=== Crystallography ===
{{further|topic=crystallographic indices|Crystal system}}
Steensen gave the first accurate observations on a type of crystal in his 1669 book ''De solido intra solidum naturaliter contento'' (the ''Dissertationis prodromus'').{{sfnp|Kunz|1918}} The principle in [[crystallography]], known simply as ''Steensen's law'', or the [[law of constancy of interfacial angles]] or the ''first law of crystallography'',<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Molčanov | first1 = K. | last2 = Stilinović | first2 = V. | year = 2014 | title = Chemical Crystallography before X-ray Diffraction | journal = Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. | volume = 53 | issue = 3| pages = 638–652 | doi = 10.1002/anie.201301319 | pmid = 24065378 }}</ref> states that the angles between corresponding faces on crystals are the same for all specimens of the same mineral. Steensen's seminal work paved the way for the [[law of rational indices]] of French mineralogist [[René-Just Haüy]] in 1801.{{sfnp|Kunz|1918}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Stephen A. Nelson (Tulane University) Introduction to Earth Materials |url=http://www.tulane.edu/~sanelson/eens211/introsymmetry.pdf |access-date=11 January 2012}}</ref> This fundamental breakthrough formed the basis of all subsequent inquiries into [[crystal structure]].

== Conversion and priesthood ==
Steensen's questioning mind also influenced his religious views. Having been brought up in the [[Lutheran]] faith, he nevertheless questioned its teachings, something which became a burning issue when confronted with [[Catholic Church|Catholicism]] while studying in [[Florence]]. After making comparative theological studies, including reading the Church Fathers and by using his natural observational skills, he decided that Catholicism, rather than Lutheranism, provided more sustenance for his constant inquisitiveness. In 1667, Steensen converted to Catholicism on [[All Souls' Day]], influenced, among others, by Lavinia Cenami Arnolfini, a noblewoman of [[Lucca]].{{sfnp|Cheney|2022}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Niels Stensen |url=http://www.whonamedit.com/doctor.cfm/2052.html |work=Whonamedit? A dictionary of medical eponyms |access-date=11 January 2011}}</ref>

Steensen traveled to Hungary, Austria and in Spring 1670 he arrived in Amsterdam. There he met with old friends [[Jan Swammerdam]] and [[Reinier de Graaf]]. With [[Anna Maria van Schurman]] and [[Antoinette Bourignon]] he discussed scientific and religious topics. The following quote is from a 1673 speech:
:''Fair is what we see, Fairer what we have perceived, Fairest what is still in veil''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.stenomuseet.dk/engelsk/mellem.htm |title=Pulchra sunt, quae videntur pulchriora quae sciuntur longe pulcherrima quae ignorantur. From a 1673 speech for the Copenhagen Anatomical Theatre |publisher=Stenomuseet.dk |access-date=11 January 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120320180636/http://www.stenomuseet.dk/engelsk/mellem.htm |archive-date=20 March 2012  }}</ref>
It is not clear if he met [[Nicolaes Witsen]], but he did read Witsen's book on shipbuilding. In 1671 he accepted the post of professor of anatomy in the University of Copenhagen,{{sfnp|Chisholm|1911}} but promised [[Cosimo III de' Medici]] he would return when he was appointed tutor to [[Ferdinando III de' Medici]].

At the beginning of 1675, Steensen decided to continue his theological studies, which he had begun even before his conversion, toward his ordination to the priesthood.{{sfnp|Kraus|2011|p=35}} After only 4 months, he was ordained priest and celebrated his first Mass on 13 April 1675 in the [[Santissima Annunziata, Florence|Basilica of the Santissima Annunziata]] in Florence at the age of 37.{{sfnp|Scherz|2002}}{{sfnp|Cheney|2022}}{{sfnp|Kraus|2011|p=35}} [[Athanasius Kircher]] expressly asked what were the reasons why he decided to become priest.{{sfnp|Kraus|2011|p=35}} Steensen had left natural sciences for education and theology and became one of the leading figures in the [[Counter-Reformation]].{{sfnp|Garrett Winter|1916|p=182}} Upon request of Duke [[John Frederick, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg|Johann Friedrich of Hanover]], [[Pope Innocent XI]] made him [[Apostolic Vicariate of Northern Germany#Vicars Apostolic for the Nordic Missions|Vicar Apostolic for the Nordic Missions]] on 21 August 1677. He was consecrated [[bishop of Titiopolis|titular bishop of Titiopolis]] on 19 September by [[Gregorio Barbarigo|Cardinal Gregorio Barbarigo]] and moved to the Lutheran North.{{sfnp|Miniati|2009|loc=Note 26, page 77.}}

In the year after he was made bishop, he was probably involved in the banning of publications by [[Baruch Spinoza]],.{{sfnp|Israel|2002|pp=251, 316}} There he had talks with [[Gottfried Leibniz]], the librarian; the two argued about Spinoza and his letter to [[Albert Burgh]], then Steensen's pupil.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.skepticfiles.org/atheist/spinozad.htm |title=Skeptic files website |publisher=Skepticfiles.org |access-date=11 January 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131107063338/http://www.skepticfiles.org/atheist/spinozad.htm |archive-date=7 November 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Leibniz recommended a reunification of the churches. Steensen worked at the city of [[Hannover]] until 1680.

After John Frederick death's, [[Prince-Bishop of Paderborn]] [[Ferdinand von Fürstenberg (1626–1683)|Ferdinand of Fürstenberg]] appointed him as Auxiliary [[Bishop of Münster]] (Church Saint Liudger) on 7 October 1680.{{sfnp|Scherz|2002}} The new [[prince-elector]] [[Ernest Augustus, Elector of Hanover]] was a Protestant. Earlier, Augustus' wife, [[Sophia of Hanover]], had made fun of Steensen's piousness; he had sold his bishop's ring and cross to help the needy.{{Citation needed|date=January 2012}} He continued zealously the work of counter reform begun by [[Bernhard von Galen]].{{sfnp|Scherz|2002}}

== Death ==
In 1683, Steensen resigned as auxiliary bishop after an argument about the election of the new bishop, [[Maximilian Henry of Bavaria]] and moved in 1684 to [[Hamburg]].{{sfnp|Cheney|2022}} There Steensen became involved again in the study of the brain and the nerve system with an old friend [[Dirck Kerckring]].{{sfnb|Perrini|Lanzino|Parenti|2010}} Steensen was invited to [[Schwerin]], when it became clear he was not accepted in Hamburg. Steensen dressed like a poor man in an old cloak. He drove in an open carriage in snow and rain. Living four days a week on bread and beer, he became emaciated.{{efn|On the other days there were never more than four courses plus a dessert, even though noblemen from the court often dined with him.}} When Steensen had fulfilled his mission, some years of difficult tasks, he wanted to go back to Italy.

Before he could return, Steensen became severely ill, his belly swelling day by day. Steensen died in Germany, after much suffering. His corpse was shipped to Florence by Kerckring upon request of [[Cosimo III de' Medici]] and buried in the [[Basilica of San Lorenzo, Florence|Basilica of San Lorenzo]] close to his protectors, the [[De' Medici]] family.{{sfnp|Scherz|2002}} In 1946 his grave was opened,<ref>Nicolai Stenonis epistolae et epistolae ad eum datae quas cum prooemio ac notis germanice scriptis edidit Gustav Scherz. Volume 2, page 997. Kopenhagen und Freiburg, Nordisk Forlag und Herder, 1952.</ref> and the corpse was reburied after a procession through the streets of the city.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://himetop.wikidot.com/niels-stensen-chapel-in-san-lorenzo |title=Niels Stensen chapel in San Lorenzo – Himetop |publisher=Himetop.wikidot.com |date=21 March 2010 |access-date=11 January 2012}}</ref>

== Beatification ==
After his death in 1686, Steensen was venerated as a saint in the [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Hildesheim|diocese of Hildesheim]].{{sfnp|Scherz|2002}} Steensen's piety and virtue have been evaluated with a view to an eventual [[canonization]]. His canonization process was begun in [[Osnabrück]] in 1938.{{sfnp|Scherz|2002}} In 1953 his grave in the crypt of the church of San Lorenzo was opened as part of the beatification process.{{sfnp|Kermit|2002|p=21}} His corpse was transferred to a fourth-century Christian sarcophagus found in the river [[Arno]] donated by the Italian state. His remains were placed in a lateral chapel of the church that received the name of ''"Capella Stenoniana"''.{{sfnp|Scherz|2002}}{{sfnp|Kermit|2002|p=21}} He was [[Beatification|beatified]] by [[Pope John Paul II]] in 1988. His feast day is 5 December.{{sfnp|Scherz|2002}}

== Legacy ==
Steensen's life and work has been studied, in particular in relation to the developments in geology in the late nineteenth century.

* The [[Steno Museum|Steensen Museum]] in [[Aarhus]], Denmark, named after Niels Steensen, holds exhibitions on the history of science and medicine.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.stenomuseet.dk/engelsk/mellem.htm |title=The Steno Museum – Welcome |publisher=Stenomuseet.dk |access-date=11 January 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120320180636/http://www.stenomuseet.dk/engelsk/mellem.htm |archive-date=20 March 2012  }}</ref> It also operates a [[planetarium]], a medicinal herb garden and the greenhouses in [[Aarhus Botanical Gardens]].
*The [[Steno Medal]], awarded by the Geological Society of Denmark, honors prominent geologists who have made significant contributions to Danish and Greenland geology, and is named in his honor.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://2dgf.dk/prizes_uk/ |title=Prizes - Geological Society of Denmark |access-date=16 April 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160421201336/http://2dgf.dk/prizes_uk/ |archive-date=21 April 2016  }}</ref>
* [[Impact crater]]s on [[List of craters on Mars: O-Z#S|Mars]] ({{Coord|68.0|S|115.6|W|globe:mars_type:landmark|name=Steno}}) and the [[Steno (lunar crater)|Moon]] are named in his honor.
* The [[mineral]] [[Stenonite]] was named in his honour.<ref>{{citation |title=Stenonite |url=http://www.mindat.org/min-3762.html |work=Mindat database |access-date=26 November 2012}}.</ref><ref>{{citation |author=Michael Fleischer |title=New Mineral Names |url=http://www.minsocam.org/ammin/AM48/AM48_1178.pdf |journal=American Mineralogist |volume=48 |page=1178 |year=1963 |author-link=Michael Fleischer (mineralogist)}}.</ref>
* The Catholic parish church of [[Grevesmühlen]], North Germany, built from 1989 to 1991, is dedicated to Niels Steensen.<ref>{{cite web|title=Niels-Stensen-Kirche Grevesmühlen|url=http://www.kath-kirche-grevesmuehlen.homepage.t-online.de/gvm.html|access-date=12 January 2012|language=de|archive-date=18 November 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121118062742/http://www.kath-kirche-grevesmuehlen.homepage.t-online.de/gvm.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* In 1950 the "Niels Steensens Gymnasium", a Catholic preparatory school, was founded by the [[Jesuit Order]] in Copenhagen.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.nsg.dk/ |title= Niels Steensens Gymnasium |access-date=12 January 2012 |language= da}}</ref>
* [[Steno Diabetes Center]], a research and teaching hospital dedicated to diabetes in [[Gentofte]], Denmark, was named after Niels Steensen.
* The Istituto Niels Stensen was founded in 1964 in Florence, Italy. Administered by the Jesuit Order, it is dedicated to his memory.
* On 11 January 2012, Steensen was commemorated with a [[Google doodle]] as the founder of geology.<ref>{{cite web|title=Nicolas Steno's 374th Birthday|url=https://doodles.google/doodle/nicolas-stenos-374th-birthday/|work=Doodles|first=Jennifer|last=Hom|year=2012|access-date=12 January 2012}}</ref><ref name=csm-2012>{{cite news|last=O'Carroll|first=Eoin|title=Nicolas Steno: The saint who undermined creationism|url=http://www.csmonitor.com/Innovation/Horizons/2012/0111/Nicolas-Steno-The-saint-who-undermined-creationism|access-date=11 January 2012|newspaper=[[Christian Science Monitor]]|date=11 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Cavna|first=Michael|title=Nicolas Steno Google Doodle: Logo digs deep to celebrate Danish 'father of geology'|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/comic-riffs/post/nicolas-steno-google-doodle-logo-digs-deep-to-celebrate-danish-father-of-geology/2012/01/10/gIQA9YNkpP_blog.html|access-date=11 January 2012|newspaper=Washington Post|date=11 January 2012}}</ref>

== Major works ==
* [http://www2.biusante.parisdescartes.fr/livanc/?cote=32043x03&do=chapitre Steensen, Niels / Sténon, Niels. ''Nicolai Stenonis Observationes anatomicae quibus varia oris, oculorum et narium vasa describuntur, novique salivae, lacrymarum et muci fontes deteguntur, et novum nobilissimi Bilsii de lymphae motu et usu commentum examinatur et rejicitur'', Lugduni Batavorum: apud J. Chouet, (1662)] via [http://www.biusante.parisdescartes.fr/copyright.htm Bibliothèque interuniversitaire de médecine (Paris)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180809111724/http://www.biusante.parisdescartes.fr/copyright.htm |date=9 August 2018 }}
* [http://www.biusante.parisdescartes.fr/histmed/medica/cote?36381 Steensen, Niels /Steensen, Niels. ''Nicolai Stenonis De Musculis et glandulis observationum specimen, cum epistolis duabus anatomicis'', Hafniae: lit. M. Godicchenii, (1664).] via [http://www.biusante.parisdescartes.fr/copyright.htm Bibliothèque interuniversitaire de médecine (Paris)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180809111724/http://www.biusante.parisdescartes.fr/copyright.htm |date=9 August 2018 }}
* [http://www.biusante.parisdescartes.fr/histmed/medica/cote?05530 ''Nicolai Steensennis Elementorum Myologiae Specimen, seu Musculi Descriptio Geometrica, cui accedunt canis carchariae dissectum caput et dissectus piscis ex canum genere...'' Florentiae : ex typ. sub signo Stellae, (1667)] via [http://www.biusante.parisdescartes.fr/copyright.htm Bibliothèque interuniversitaire de médecine (Paris)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180809111724/http://www.biusante.parisdescartes.fr/copyright.htm |date=9 August 2018 }}.
* [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k106685b.r=stenon.langEN ''Discours de M. Stenon sur l'anatomie du cerveau...'', R. de Ninville (Paris), 1669] via [http://gallica.bnf.fr/  Gallica]
* [http://www.biusante.parisdescartes.fr/histmed/medica/cote?06916 ''Nicolai Stenonis solido intra solidum naturaliter contento dissertationis prodromus ...''  Florentiae : ex typographia sub signo Stellae (1669)], [https://books.google.com/books?id=xz28AAAAIAAJ&pg=PP5 via Google Books] [[iarchive:cu31924012131458|''The Prodromus of Nicolaus Steno's Dissertation concerning a solid body enclosed by process of nature within a solid; an English version with an introduction and explanatory notes by John Garrett Winter'', New York: Macmillan Company, (1916)]] via the [[Internet Archive]]
* ''Nicolai Stenonis ad novae philosophiae reformatorem de vera philosophia epistola'', Florentiae, 1675 (letter to Spinoza)
* [http://www.biusante.parisdescartes.fr/histmed/medica/cote?09371 ''Nicolai Stenonis Opera philosophica'', edited by Wilhelm Maar... vol. I, Copenhagen : V. Tryde, (1910)] via [http://gallica.bnf.fr/  Gallica]
* [http://www2.biusante.parisdescartes.fr/livanc/?cote=09371x02&do=chapitre ''Nicolai Stenonis Opera philosophica'', edited by Wilhelm Maar... vol. II, Copenhagen : V. Tryde, (1910)]

== References ==
===Notes===
{{notelist}}

===Citations===
{{reflist|30em}}

===Sources===
{{refbegin|30em|indent=yes}}
*{{cite book|last=Abbona|first=Francesco|title=Dizionario Interdisciplinare di Scienza e Fede : Cultura Scientifica, Filosofia e Teologia|year=2002|publisher=Urbaniana University Press|location=Città del Vaticano|isbn=978-88-311-9265-1|chapter-url=http://www.disf.org/Voci/4.asp|editor1-first=Alberto|editor1-last=Strumia|editor2-last=Tanzella-Nitti|editor2-first=Giuseppe|access-date=12 January 2012|chapter=Geologia}} ([[Pontifical University of the Holy Cross]], [[Opus Dei]])
*{{cite journal|doi=10.1163/157338210X516305|pmid=21469295|title=Mathématiser l'anatomie: La myologie de Stensen (1667)|year=2010|last1=Andrault|first1=Raphaële|journal=Early Science and Medicine|volume=15|issue=4|pages=505–536|language=fr}}
*{{cite book|last=Brookfield|first=Michael E.|title=Principles of stratigraphy|year=2004|publisher=Blackwell Publ.|location=Malden, Mass.|isbn=978-1-4051-1164-5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ecgdvth9EjkC|access-date=12 November 2014}}
*{{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Steno, Nicolaus |volume=25 |page=879}}<!-- = Chisholm (1911) -->
* {{cite web|title=Bishop Bl. Niels Stensen |url=http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bstensen.html |work=Catholic Hierarchy|access-date=11 January 2012 |last=Cheney |first=David M |date=9 October 2022}}
*{{cite book|last=Cutler|first=Alan|title=The Seashell on the Mountaintop: A Story of Science, Sainthood, and the Humble Genius Who Discovered a New History of the Earth|year=2003|publisher=Dutton|location=New York|isbn=978-0-525-94708-0}}
* {{cite book|last=Garrett Winter|first=John|chapter=Introduction – the Life of Steno|title=The prodromus of Nicolaus Steno's dissertation: concerning a solid body enclosed by progress of nature within a solid – an English version with an introduction and explanatory notes|year=1916|publisher=Macmillan|pages=175–187|chapter-url=https://archive.org/stream/cu31924012131458#page/n25/mode/2up}} (Public Domain)
*{{Cite CE1913 |last=Hansen |first=Niels |wstitle=Nicolaus Steno |volume=14}}
*{{cite book|editor-last=Rosenberg|editor-first=Gary D.|title=The Revolution in Geology from the Renaissance to the Enlightenment|year=2009|publisher=Geological Society of America|location=Boulder, Co|isbn=978-0-8137-1203-1|type=GSM|chapter=On the origin of natural history: Steno's modern, but forgotten philosophy of science|first=Jens Morten|last=Hansen|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4gGAgHcKX6YC&pg=PA161|pages=159–178}}
*{{cite book|last=Israel|first=Jonathan I.|title=Radical enlightenment&nbsp;— philosophy and the making of modernity 1650–1750|year=2002|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=Oxford|isbn=978-0-19-925456-9}}
*{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/0021-9290(90)90310-Y|title=Niels Stensen's geometrical theory of muscle contraction (1667): A reappraisal|year=1990|last1=Kardel|first1=Troels|journal=Journal of Biomechanics|volume=23|issue=10|pages=953–65|pmid=2229093}}
*{{cite journal|last=Kardel|first=Troels|title=Stensen's Myology in Historical Perspective|journal=Transactions of the American Philosophical Society|year=1994|volume=84|issue=1|pages=1–57|doi=10.2307/1006586|url=http://www.academia.dk/MedHist/Biblioteket/pdf/kardel_1994.pdf|access-date=12 January 2012|jstor=1006586}}
*{{cite book|last=Kermit|first=Hans|chapter=The Life of Niels Stensen|editor1-first=Karen|editor1-last=Ascani|editor2-first=Hans|editor2-last=Kermit|editor3-first=Gunver|editor3-last=Skytte|title=Niccolò Stenone (1638–1686) : anatomista, geologo, vescovo; atti del seminario organizzato da Universitetsbiblioteket i Tromsø e l'Accademia de Danimarca, lunedì 23 ottobre 2000|year=2002|publisher="L'Erma" di Bretschneider|location=Roma|isbn=978-88-8265-213-5|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PwyFelBpQnYC&pg=PA17|access-date=10 January 2012}}
*{{Cite book | last = Kermit | first = Hans | year = 2003 | title = Niels Stensen, 1638–1686: The Scientist Who Was Beatified | location = Leominster, UK | publisher = Gracewing | pages = 82–83 | isbn = 978-0-85244-583-9 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=6al2BH438AYC&q=ductus+stenonianus&pg=PA82 | access-date = 18 February 2008 }}
*{{cite book|last=Kooijmans|first=Luuc|title=De doodskunstenaar&nbsp;— de anatomische lessen van Frederik Ruysch|year=2004|publisher=Bert Bakker|location=Amsterdam|isbn=978-90-351-2673-2|url=http://www.dbnl.org/tekst/kooi020dood01_01/|language=nl|access-date=10 January 2012}}
*{{cite book|last=Kooijmans|first=Luuc|title=Gevaarlijke kennis&nbsp;— inzicht en angst in de dagen van Jan Swammerdam|year=2007|publisher=Bert Bakker|location=Amsterdam|isbn=978-90-351-3250-4|language=nl|url=http://www.nlpvf.nl/book/book2.php?Book=647|access-date=13 January 2012|archive-date=1 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110701233154/http://www.nlpvf.nl/book/book2.php?Book=647|url-status=dead}}
*{{cite book|last=Kraus|first=Max-Joseph|title=Niels Stensen in Leiden|publisher=GRIN Verlag GmbH|location=Munich|isbn=978-3-640-86454-6|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WnEZ3FGvypwC&pg=PA35|access-date=11 January 2012|language=de|year=2011}}
*{{cite journal|last=Kunz|first=George F.|title=The Life and Work of Haüy|journal=American Mineralogist|year=1918|volume=3|issue=6|pages=61–89|url=http://www.minsocam.org/msa/collectors_corner/arc/hauyii.htm|access-date=12 January 2012|author-link=George F. Kunz}}
* {{cite book|last=Miniati|first=Stefano|title=Nicholas Steno's challenge for Truth. Reconciling science and faith|year=2009|publisher=FrancoAngeli|isbn=978-88-568-2065-2|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KthQ11k_NCcC&pg=PA77}}
* {{cite book |title= The New Catholic Encyclopedia|last=Scherz|first=G. |year=2002 |publisher=Catholic University Press/Thomas Gale|editor= Catholic University of America |isbn=978-0-7876-4017-0|pages=508–509|chapter=Stensen, Niels, Bl. | volume=13 – Seq to The}}
*{{cite journal|doi=10.1007/s00381-010-1236-5|pmid=20700741|title=The bishop and anatomist Niels Stensen (1638–1686) and his contributions to our early understanding of the brain|year=2010|last1=Tubbs|first1=R. Shane|last2=Mortazavi|first2=Martin M.|last3=Shoja|first3=Mohammadali M.|last4=Loukas|first4=Marios|last5=Cohen Gadol|first5=Aaron A.|journal=Child's Nervous System|volume=27|issue=1|pages=1–6|language=nl|doi-access=free}}
*{{cite journal|doi=10.1227/01.NEU.0000370248.80291.C5|title=Niels Stensen (1638–1686): Scientist, Neuroanatomist, and Saint|year=2010|last1=Perrini|first1=Paolo|last2=Lanzino|first2=Giuseppe|last3=Parenti|first3=Giuliano Francesco|journal=Neurosurgery|volume=67|pages=3–9|pmid=20559086|issue=1|s2cid=25853167}}
*{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/j.ijcard.2010.09.055|title="The heart is simply a muscle" and first description of the tetralogy of "Fallot". Early contributions to cardiac anatomy and pathology by bishop and anatomist Niels Stensen (1638–1686)|year=2010|last1=Tubbs|first1=R. Shane|last2=Gianaris|first2=Nicholas|last3=Shoja|first3=Mohammadali M.|last4=Loukas|first4=Marios|last5=Cohen Gadol|first5=Aaron A.|journal=International Journal of Cardiology|ref={{sfnref|Tubbs et al.|2010}}|volume=154|issue=3|pages=312–5|pmid=20965586}}
*{{cite book|last=Woods|first=Thomas E.|author-link=Thomas Woods|title=How the Catholic Church built Western civilization|year=2005|publisher=Regnery Publ.|location=Washington, D.C.|isbn=978-0-89526-038-3|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/howcatholicchurc0000wood}}
*{{cite book|editor-last=Wyse Jackson|editor-first=Patrick N.|title=Four centuries of geological travel : the search for knowledge on foot, bicycle, sledge and camel|year=2007|publisher=The Geological Society|location=London|isbn=978-1-86239-234-2|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=olMgmIYuMPYC&pg=PA26}}
{{refend}}

== Further reading ==
{{refbegin}}
* Tertsch, H. (1958): Niels Stensen und die Kristallographie. Acta historica Scientiarum Naturalium et Medicinalium, Copenhagen, 15, 120–139 (in German).
*{{cite journal|last=Porter|first=Ian Herbert|title=Thomas Bartholin (1616–80) And Niels Steensen (1638–86) Master And Pupil|journal=Medical History|year=1963|volume=7|pages=99–125|pmid=13985566|issue=2|pmc=1034806|doi=10.1017/s0025727300028155}}
*{{cite book|last=Wieh|first=Hermann|title=Niels Stensen : sein Leben in Dokumenten u. Bildern|year=1988|publisher=Echter|location=Würzburg|isbn=978-3-429-01165-9|language=de}}
* {{cite journal|journal=Bratisl Lek Listy|last1=Holomanova |first1=A.|last2= Ivanova |first2=A.|last3= Brucknerova|first3=I.|title= Niels Stensen Prestigious scholar of the 17th century |url=http://bmj.fmed.uniba.sk/2002/10302-08.pdf|year=2002|pages=90–93|volume=102 |issue=2 |pmid=12061027 }}
* Rosenberg, Gary D. (ed.), ''The Revolution in Geology from the Renaissance to the Enlightenment'' (''Geological Society of America Memoir'' 203) (Boulder, Colorado: 2009).
*{{cite book|title=Diener der Wahrheit – Niels Stensen|year=2011|location=Schwerin|isbn=978-3-9810202-6-7|editor-first= Georg |editor-last=Diederich|publisher=Thomas-Morus-Bildungswerk|language=de}} Selected papers on the life and works of Niels Stensen.*{{cite book|editor-last=Rosenberg|editor-first=Gary D.|title=The Revolution in Geology from the Renaissance to the Enlightenment|year=2009|publisher=Geological Society of America|location=Boulder, Co|isbn=978-0-8137-1203-1|type=GSM|chapter=Nicholas Steno's way from experience to faith: Geological evolution and the original sin of mankind|first=Frank|last=Sobiech|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4gGAgHcKX6YC&pg=PA179|pages=179–186}}
*{{cite journal|doi=10.5840/ncbq201515110|title=Science, Ethos, and Transcendence in the Anatomy of Nicolaus Steno|year=2015|last1=Sobiech|first1=Frank|journal=The National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly|volume='''15''' (1)|pages=107–126|s2cid=170234733 }}
* [http://aejt.com.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0010/395506/AEJT_5.5_Sobiech.pdf ''Blessed Nicholas Steno (1638–1686). Natural-History Research and Science of the Cross'' by Frank Sobiech, in: Australian EJournal of Theology, August 2005, Issue 5] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140213041713/http://aejt.com.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0010/395506/AEJT_5.5_Sobiech.pdf |date=13 February 2014 }}  {{ISSN|1448-6326}}
*{{cite book|title=Nicolaus Steno: Biography and Original Papers of a 17th Century Scientist|year=2013|location=Berlin|isbn=978-3-642-25078-1|editor-first= Troels |editor-last=Kardel|publisher=Springer}}
{{refend}}

== External links ==
* {{DBI|url=https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/niccolo-stenone_(Dizionario-Biografico)|volume=94|last=Miniati|first=Stefano|title=STENONE, Niccolò}}
* [http://journals.lww.com/neurotodayonline/Fulltext/2004/11000/Steno_s_Amazing_Neuroanatomy_Lecture_Sticks_After.14.aspx Steensen's Amazing Neuroanatomy Lecture Sticks After 339 Years]
* [http://nielssteensen.dk/ Niels Steensen website]
* [http://nielssteensen.dk/archivum-et-bibliographia/ Archivum Nicolai Stenonis]
* [http://lhldigital.lindahall.org/cdm/ref/collection/earththeory/id/16651 ''De Solido Intra Solidum'']; [http://lhldigital.lindahall.org/cdm/ref/collection/earththeory/id/6605 ''Prodromus to a Dissertation Concerning Solids Naturally Contained Within Solids'']; and [http://lhldigital.lindahall.org/cdm/ref/collection/nat_hist/id/38386 ''Elementorum Myologiæ Specimen''] – full digital facsimiles at [[Linda Hall Library]]

{{Subject bar |portal1= Biography |portal2= Catholicism |portal3= Denmark |commons=y |commons-search= Nicolaus Steno |q=y}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Steno, Nicolas}}
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[[Category:Danish beatified people]]
[[Category:17th-century venerated Christians]]
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[[Category:17th-century Danish clergy]]
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[[Category:Danish Roman Catholic bishops]]