Foetus 18 Weeks: the greatest photograph of the 20th century?

In April 1965, Life magazine put a photograph called ‘Foetus 18 Weeks’ on its cover and caused a sensation. The issue was a spectacular success, the fastest-selling copy in Life’s entire history. In full colour and crystal clear detail, the picture showed a ‘foetus’ in its amniotic sac, with its umbilical cord winding off to the placenta. The unborn child, floating in a seemingly cosmic backdrop, appears vulnerable yet serene. Its eyes are closed and its tiny, perfectly formed fists are clutched to its chest. Cap

Original by Photojournalist, Lennart Nilsson published in Life Magazine

Source: The Guardian