The Story of Alfonso Rodríguez and his Devil’s Armchair

In 1550, a doctor named Alfonso Rodríguez arrived in the city of Valladolid to teach at the University of Valladolid’s Faculty of Medicine. Alfonso had learned medicine in Italy. He was a specialist in anatomy and became one of the best doctors of the time and was known in many places in Europe. Alfonso was a doctor so well known that the course attracted many doctors, graduates, students and apprentices from all over the country and even from abroad. Of all the students of the course, one especially emphasized: Andres de Proaza. Andres was 22 years old and had come…