Dissertation committee:
Κουτσιλιέρης Μιχαήλ-Καθηγητής, Κυριακοπούλου-Λυμπέρη Μαρία- Αναπλ. Καθηγήτρια, Πουλάκου-Ρεμπελάκου Ελευθερία-Φωτεινή, Επικ. Καθηγήτρια
Summary:
The Byzantine period (330-1453 AD) was a special era in the history of Greek
medicine, which is of unique interest, mainly because until now it has hardly
been studied. During this time period, the invaluable heritage of ancient Greek
medical texts (Galenical and Hippocratic heritage) was rescued, and new
scientific methods and innovative medical practices were applied.
The present dissertation was based on the study and processing of the writings
of important representatives of Byzantine medicine, such as Oribasius of
Pergamum (4th century AD), Alexander of Tralles (6th century AD), Aetius of
Amida (6th century AD), Paul of Aegina (7th century AD) and others, whose works
included important elements of Medical Physiology.
Besides the above-mentioned scholars, there were other lesser known Byzantine
scholars, who wrote entire manuscripts on the subject of the anatomical
structure and physiology of the human body. A typical example is Nemesius of
Emesa (4th century AD), whose manuscript entitled "On the Nature of Man", is
the first complete example of Christian anthropology, influencing later
Byzantine writers including Meletius Iatrosophista (8th century AD), Theophilus
Protospatharius (7th century AD) and Leo Iatrosophista (9th century AD), who
all have produced works under the same or a similar title.
Evidence of the strong influence that the Byzantine writers had from the
Hippocratic and Galenical humoralism is also presented in this dissertation, as
well as their views regarding the functions of the brain, heart and liver, and
the contribution of these three vital organs to the maintainance of human life.
Moreover, the views of the Byzantine authors on the issue of implementation of
anatomical dissection research studies in order to understand the composition
of the human body reveal the "tolerance" of Byzantine science with regard to
this issue, which reinforces the argument we demonstrated about Byzantium
expressing "originality" in certain issues concerning Medicine.
Finally, the Christian character that Byzantine medicine adopted, as well as
its charitable nature, evidenced by the establishment of the first hospital, is
mentioned. In addition, the importance of preserving the achievements of
ancient Greek medical knowledge by transferring the classical tradition to the
Medieval West (largely Arabic translations) is demonstrated.
Keywords:
Byzantine Medicine, Physiology, Anatomy, History of Medicine, Byzantium
