Continuing the introductions of the major medical compilations, this time Aetius of Amida’s Medical Books (Libri Medicinales).

Other People’s Introductions

If Aetius wrote an introduction to his work, it no longer exists. Instead, we get notes scribbled in manuscripts, some with summaries of the whole work, some just the first two books. One day, I might get around to posting translations of the more complete ones. For now, here’s an example of a shorter one from the title page of Codex Parisinus suppl. gr. 1240, fol. 5r:

“Aetius Amidenus’ (Comes Obsiquii) Book of 16 Medical Discussions

He has summarized from the three books of Oribasius, which he wrote to Julian, to Eustathius, and to Eunapius, and from the therapeutic [works] of Galen, Archigenes, Ruphos; furthermore, of Disocorides, Herodotos, Soranos, Philagrios, Philonos, Philoumenos, Posidonios, and some other notable ancient physicians.”

ΑΕΤΙΟΥ ΑΜΙΔΗΝΟΥ ΚΟΜΗΤΟΣ ΤΟΥ ΟΨΙΚΙΟΥ ΛΟΓΩΝ ΙΑΤΡΙΚΩΝ ις ΒΙΒΛΙΟΝ

συνοπισθὲν ἐκ τῶν τριῶν βιβλίων Ὀριβασίου ὧν ἔγραψε πρὸς Ἰουλιανὸν καὶ πρὸς Εὐστάθιον καὶ πρὸς Εὐνάπιον ἔκ τε τῶν θεραπευτικῶν Γαληνοῦ καὶ Ἀρχιγένους καὶ Ῥουφου, ἔτι δὲ καὶ Διοσκορίδου καὶ Ἡροδότου καὶ Σωρανοῦ Φιλαγρίου τε καὶ Φίλωνος καὶ Φιλουμένου καὶ Ποσειδονίου καὶ ἑτέρων τινῶν ἀρχαίων ἰατρῶν ἐπισήμων.

Sometimes, individual books get an introduction as well. Here’s an example from Parisinus gr. 2193, fol. 1r, its crimson ink here rendered reproduction-grey:

“Aetius’ first book contains material from Galen’s introductory remarks about the four orders of each kind of simple drug, and how, from their taste, smell and color, to infer the power of each of the simples.”

Τάδε ἔνεστιν ἐν τῷ πρώτῳ λόγῳ Ἀετίου ἐκ τῶν Γαληνοῡ προοιμίων περὶ τῶν τεσσάρων τάξεων ἑκάστου γένους τῶν ἁπλῶν φαρμάκων καὶ ὅπως χρὴ ἔκ τε γεύσεως καὶ τῆς ὀσμῆς καὶ τῆς χροιᾶς τεκμαίρεσθαι τὴν ἑκαστου τῶν ἁπλῶν δύναμιν.

Copy-Paste

We do have something of an introduction to the first and second of the sixteen Medical Books, although it is a bit abrupt. The first two books form a unit on pharmacology: they present excerpts of what Galen (and a few others) wrote about simple drugs of vegetable, mineral and animal origin. It is like a big list of ingredients for use in recipes, one which describes the medicinal properties of each plant, animal or stone, so that you know which to mix together for different ailments.

Galen’s and Aetius’ pharmacology have very different aims. For Galen, the study of simple drugs was about discovery: how to discover and prove the presence of different medicinal properties in different things. Aetius’ aims are practical. Taking Galen’s investigations for granted, he simply states the properties of drugs Galen has already proved. Galen did research. Aetius applies it.

In his introduction, Aetius does something new, as well, taking what Galen has written about how to use taste, smell and sight to discover the properties of plants, and producing a kind of cut-and-paste rearrangement. His goal seems to have been to teach people how to judge the quality of different herbs. Whereas Galen’s procedure was something like,

“if pennywort in general tastes like this, then pennywort has this medicinal property.”

Aetius’ is more like,

“if this particular basil or pennywort is any good, then it will taste like this.”

Galen’s procedure is pretty important if you are trying to set up a science of pharmacology. Aetius’ procedure is important if you want to know whether the cinnamon the huckster is selling you is any good.

His introduction begins like this:

“The differences of the individual activities in each drug result from the extent to which each is hot or cold, dry or wet, and made of fine or coarse parts. The extent that they reach in each of the categories mentioned is not able to be put into words, at least in terms of the most precise truth of the matter; but, we have tried to demarcate [the extent] with boundaries that are sufficiently clear for the art’s practical use [...]”

αἱ διαφοραὶ τῶν κατὰ μέρος ἐνεργειῶν ἐν ἑκάστῳ τῶν φαρμάκων γίγνονται τῷ ἐπὶ τοσόνδε θερμὸν ἢ ψυχρὸν ἢ ξηρὸν ἢ ὑγρὸν ἢ λεπτομερὲς ἢ παχυμερὲς ὑπάρχειν ἕκαστον αὐτῶν. τὸ δὲ ἐπὶ τοσόνδε προήκειν ἐν ἑκάστῳ τῶν εἰρημένων ἄρρητόν ἐστιν πρός γε τὴν ἀκριβεστάτην ἀλήθειαν. ἀλλ’ ἡμεῖς καὶ αὐτὸ περιλαβεῖν ἐπειράθημεν ὅροις σαφέσιν ἱκανοῖς εἰς τὴν χρείαν τῆς τέχνης [...]

Aetius Amidenus, Libri Medicinales, book I, proem, 17,2–7 Olivieri

Which is originally taken from the seventh book of Galen’s work On The Powers of Simple Drugs:

“What will be discussed in this and the books that remain after it are the primary powers of plants, since the order of instruction we are presenting here follows the alphabetical order with which we started. In the previous book, therefore, we got as far as the letter I; in this one, we will make a start with the letter K to the extent we mentioned before, that we will refer everything back to the principles which we demonstrated previously. For from the extent to which each drug is hot or cold, wet or dry, and made of fine or coarse parts, the differences of the particular activities result; and the extent that they reach in each of the previously mentioned categories is not able to be put into words, at least in terms of the most precise truth of the matter; but, we have tried to demarcate [the extent] with boundaries that are sufficiently clear for the art’s practical use [...]”

εἰρήσονται δ' ἐν τούτῳ τῷ βιβλίῳ καὶ τῷ μετ' αὐτὸ τῶν ὑπολοίπων φυτῶν αἱ πρῶται δυνάμεις, τὴν τάξιν τῆς διδασκαλίας κᾀνταῦθα κατὰ τὴν τάξιν τῶν γραμμάτων ποιησαμένων ἡμῶν, ἀφ' ὧν ἄρχονται. ἐν μὲν οὖν τῷ πρὸ τοῦδε μέχρι τοῦ ι προήλθομεν· ἐνταυθοῖ δὲ τὴν ἀρχὴν ἀπὸ τοῦ κ ποιησόμεθα τοσοῦτον ἔτι προαναμνήσαντες, ὡς εἰς τὰς προαποδεδειγμένας ἀρχὰς ἀνάξομεν ἅπαντα· τῷ γὰρ ἐπὶ τοσόνδε θερμὸν ἢ ψυχρὸν, ἢ ὑγρὸν ἢ ξηρὸν, ἢ λεπτομερὲς ἢ παχυμερὲς ὑπάρχειν ἕκαστον τῶν φαρμάκων αἱ διαφοραὶ τῶν κατὰ μέρος ἐνεργειῶν αὐτῶν γίγνονται, τὸ δ' ἐπὶ τοσόνδε προήκειν ἐν ἑκάστῳ τῶν προειρημένων ἄῤῥητόν ἐστι πρός γε τὴν ἀκριβεστάτην ἀλήθειαν. ἀλλ' ἡμεῖς καὶ τοῦτο περιλαβεῖν ἐπειράθημεν ὅροις σαφέσιν, ἱκανοῖς εἰς τὴν χρείαν τῆς τέχνης [...]

Galen, De simplicium medicamentorum temperamentis et facultatibus, book 7, proem, 12.2 Kühn

In Your Own Words

There is, however, one sentence in the introduction that has no parallel. It comes towards the end and might be Aetius’ own words:

“I will give a summary under separate headings of all these [capacities and activities], and likewise of several others that are especially useful, after I have finished going over, as much as possible, the general capacities and activities species by species.”

τούτων δὲ ἁπάντων ὥσπερ καὶ ἑτέρων τινῶν χρησιμωτάτων ἐν κεφαλαίῳ τὴν σύνοψιν ποιήσομαι, μετὰ τὸ διελθεῖν με κατ’ εἶδος ὡς οἷόν τε τὰς καθόλου δυνάμεις τε ἑκάστου καὶ ἐνεργείας.

Aetius Amidenus, Libri Medicinales, book I, proem, 29,28–30 Olivieri