He is known for developing techniques for preserving anatomical specimens, which he used to create dioramas or scenes incorporating human parts.

[2] Ruysch is also known for his proof of valves in the lymphatic system, the vomeronasal organ in snakes, and arteria centralis oculi (the central artery of the eye).

The dissection of corpses was relatively expensive and cadavers were scarce, which led Ruysch to find alternative ways to prepare the organs.

Ruysch researched many areas of human anatomy, and physiology, using spirits to preserve organs, and assembled one of Europe's most famous anatomical collections.

[6] His chief skill was the preparation and preservation of specimens in a secret liquor balsamicum, and he is believed to be one of the first to use arterial embalming to this effect.

By adding these elements, Ruysch was able to cover the marks and stitches from the embalming process and give his displays a more lifelike appearance.

[7] While some of his displays had abnormalities and defects, the main goal of his collections was to create works of art that he believed showed the perfection of the human body.

[10] In her early years, his daughter Rachel Ruysch, a painter of still lifes, had helped him to decorate the collection with flowers, fishes, seashells and the delicate body parts with lace.

[7] In 1697, Peter the Great and Nicolaes Witsen visited Ruysch who had all the specimens exposed in five rooms, on two days during the week open for the public.

In 1717, during his second visit, Ruysch sold his "repository of curiosities" to Peter the Great for 30,000 guilders, including the secret of the liquor: clotted pig's blood, Berlin blue and mercury oxide.

published Ruyschia, a genus of flowering plants from South America, belonging to the family Marcgraviaceae and named in Frederik Ruysch's honor.