Until the birth of modern embryology through observation of the mammalian ovum by Karl Ernst von Baer in 1827, there was no clear scientific understanding of embryology. Only in the late 1950s when ultrasound was first used for uterine scanning, was the true developmental chronology of human fetus available.

Who is father of embryology?

[Karl Ernst von Baer: 1792-1876. On the 200th birthday of the "father of embryology"]

Who was the first embryologist?

The first written record of embryological research is attributed to Hippocrates (460 BC–370 BC) who wrote about obstetrics and gynecology. In this regard Needham declares that Hippocrates, and not Aristotle, should be recognized as the first true embryologist.