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Aëtius of Amida (/eɪˈiːʃəs/; Ancient Greek: Ἀέτιος Ἀμιδηνός; Latin: Aëtius Amidenus; fl. mid-5th century to mid-6th century) was a Byzantine Greek physician and medical writer,^[1]^[2] particularly distinguished by the extent of his erudition.^[3] His birth and death years are not known, but his writings appear to date from the end of the 5th century or the beginning of the 6th.

Aëtius was probably a Christian.^[4] If so, he would be among the earliest recorded Greek Christian physicians.^[5]

He is sometimes confused with Aëtius of Antioch, a famous Arian who lived in the time of the Emperor Julian.

Life

Aëtius was born a Greek^[6]^[7] and a native of Amida (modern Diyarbakır, Turkey), a city of Mesopotamia,^[8] and studied at Alexandria, which was the most famous medical school of the age.

Aëtius mentions Patriarch Cyril of Alexandria, who died in 444,^[9] and Petrus archiater, probably the physician of Theodoric the Great,^[10] whom he defines as a contemporary, so it appears that he wrote at the very end of the 5th century or the beginning of the 6th. He is in turn quoted by Alexander of Tralles,^[11] who lived probably in the middle of the 6th century.

Aëtius traveled and visited the copper mines of Soli, Cyprus, Jericho, and the Dead Sea.

In some manuscripts Aëtius has the title of komēs opsikiou (κόμης ὀψικίου), Latin comes obsequii, which means the chief officer in attendance on the emperor.^[12]

Works

Aëtius seems to be the first Greek medical writer among the Christians who gives any specimen of the spells and charms so much in vogue with the Egyptians, such as that of Saint Blaise in removing a bone which sticks in the throat,^[13] and another in relation to a fistula.^[14]

The division of Aëtius' work Sixteen Books on Medicine (Βιβλία Ἰατρικά Ἑκκαίδεκα) into four tetrabibli was not made by himself, but (as Fabricius observes) was the invention of some modern translator, as his way of quoting his own work is according to the numerical series of the books. Although his work does not contain much original matter, and is heavily indebted to Galen and Oribasius,^[15] it is nevertheless one of the most valuable medical remains of antiquity, as being a very judicious compilation from the writings of many authors, many from the Alexandrian Library, whose works have long since been lost.^[16]

In the manuscript for book 8.13, the word ἀκμή (acme) is written as ἀκνή, the origin of the modern word acne.^[17]

Aëtius is recorded as having developed a concoction for contraception consisting of aloe, wallflower seed, pepper, and saffron. He is also known to have developed an abortifacient mixture, whose contents are not known.^[18]

References

^ Mercuriale, Girolamo (2008). De arte gymnastica. L. S. Olschki. p. 787. Aetius of Amida (1st half, 6' century), Greek Galenist doctor, author of a major encyclopedia of extracts.
^ Greenhill, William Alexander (1870). "Aetius". In Smith, William (ed.). Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. Vol. 1. Boston, MA. p. 53. Archived from the original on 2011-06-05. Retrieved 2007-11-05.{{cite encyclopedia}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^ Dunglison, Robley (1872). History of Medicine from the Earliest Ages to the Commencement of the 19th Century. Philadelphia: Lindsay and Blakiston. p. 182.
^ Colón, A. R.; Colón, P. A. (January 1999). Nurturing children: a history of pediatrics. Greenwood Press. p. 63. ISBN 9780313310805. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
^ Meade, Richard Hardaway (1968). An introduction to the history of general surgery. Saunders. p. 108. OCLC 438114. Aetius of Amida, who lived in the sixth century A.D. and was the first Greek physician who was a Christian, had a chapter on aneurysms in his book on surgery.
^ Plant, Ian Michael (2004). Women Writers of Ancient Greece and Rome: An Anthology. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 229. ISBN 9780806136219. Aetius: A Greek from Amida (in Mesopotamia), who wrote on philosophy in the mid- sixth century AD in Alexandria.
^ Kueny, Kathryn M. (2013). Conceiving Identities: Maternity in Medieval Muslim Discourse and Practice. SUNY Press. p. 340. ISBN 9781438447872. Greek physician Aetius of Amida (ca. sixth c. CE) likewise recommended rubbing an ointment made from pome— granate to prevent conception
^ Photius, cod. 221
^ tetrab. iii. serm. i. 24, p. 464
^ tetrab. ii. serm. iii. 110, p. 357
^ Alexander of Tralles, xii. 8, p. 346
^ see Du Cange, Gloss. Med. et Inf. Latin.
^ tetrab. ii. serm. iv. 50, p. 404
^ tetrab. iv. serm. m. 14, p. 762
^ Withington, Edward Theodore (1894). Medical History from the Earliest Times: A Popular History of the Healing Art. Scientific Press. p. 130. aetius medical.
^ Lawrence, J.J. (1905). "Medical brief". The Medical Brief: A Monthly Journal of Scientific Medicine and Surgery. 33. Boston: Harvard University: 166. Retrieved 2007-11-04.
^ Kudlien, Franz (1970). "Aetius of Amida". Dictionary of Scientific Biography. Vol. 1. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. pp. 68–69. ISBN 0-684-10114-9.
^ Riddle, John M. (1997). Eve's Herbs: A History of Contraception and Abortion in the West. Harvard University Press. pp. 55, 203. ISBN 0-674-27026-6.

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Smith, William, ed. (1870). "Aetius". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology.

External links

Olivieri's CMG Greek text (1935-1950)
[1] History of Magic and Experimental Science, Part 2, by Lynn Thorndike who reviewed both Aetius and Galen

[Mercuriale_2008-1] Mercuriale, Girolamo (2008). De arte gymnastica. L. S. Olschki. p. 787. Aetius of Amida (1st half, 6' century), Greek Galenist doctor, author of a major encyclopedia of extracts.

[2] Greenhill, William Alexander (1870). "Aetius". In Smith, William (ed.). Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. Vol. 1. Boston, MA. p. 53. Archived from the original on 2011-06-05. Retrieved 2007-11-05.{{cite encyclopedia}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

[3] Dunglison, Robley (1872). History of Medicine from the Earliest Ages to the Commencement of the 19th Century. Philadelphia: Lindsay and Blakiston. p. 182.

[ColónColón1999-4] Colón, A. R.; Colón, P. A. (January 1999). Nurturing children: a history of pediatrics. Greenwood Press. p. 63. ISBN 9780313310805. Retrieved 19 October 2012.

[Meade_1968-5] Meade, Richard Hardaway (1968). An introduction to the history of general surgery. Saunders. p. 108. OCLC 438114. Aetius of Amida, who lived in the sixth century A.D. and was the first Greek physician who was a Christian, had a chapter on aneurysms in his book on surgery.

[Plant_2004-6] Plant, Ian Michael (2004). Women Writers of Ancient Greece and Rome: An Anthology. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 229. ISBN 9780806136219. Aetius: A Greek from Amida (in Mesopotamia), who wrote on philosophy in the mid- sixth century AD in Alexandria.

[Kueny_2013-7] Kueny, Kathryn M. (2013). Conceiving Identities: Maternity in Medieval Muslim Discourse and Practice. SUNY Press. p. 340. ISBN 9781438447872. Greek physician Aetius of Amida (ca. sixth c. CE) likewise recommended rubbing an ointment made from pome— granate to prevent conception

[photius-8] Photius, cod. 221

[9] tetrab. iii. serm. i. 24, p. 464

[10] tetrab. ii. serm. iii. 110, p. 357

[11] Alexander of Tralles, xii. 8, p. 346

[12] see Du Cange, Gloss. Med. et Inf. Latin.

[13] tetrab. ii. serm. iv. 50, p. 404

[14] tetrab. iv. serm. m. 14, p. 762

[15] Withington, Edward Theodore (1894). Medical History from the Earliest Times: A Popular History of the Healing Art. Scientific Press. p. 130. aetius medical.

[16] Lawrence, J.J. (1905). "Medical brief". The Medical Brief: A Monthly Journal of Scientific Medicine and Surgery. 33. Boston: Harvard University: 166. Retrieved 2007-11-04.

[17] Kudlien, Franz (1970). "Aetius of Amida". Dictionary of Scientific Biography. Vol. 1. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. pp. 68–69. ISBN 0-684-10114-9.

[18] Riddle, John M. (1997). Eve's Herbs: A History of Contraception and Abortion in the West. Harvard University Press. pp. 55, 203. ISBN 0-674-27026-6.

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{short description|6th-century Byzantine physician}}
-'''Aëtius of Amida''' ({{IPAc-en|eɪ|ˈ|iː|ʃ|ə|s}}; {{lang-grc-gre|Ἀέτιος Ἀμιδηνός}}; [[Latin]]: ''Aëtius Amidenus''; fl. mid-5th century to mid-6th century) was a [[Byzantine Greeks|Byzantine Greek]] physician and medical writer,<ref name="Mercuriale 2008">{{cite book |title= De arte gymnastica |last= Mercuriale |first= Girolamo |year= 2008 |publisher= L. S. Olschki |isbn= |quote= Aetius of Amida (1st half, 6' century), Greek Galenist doctor, author of a major encyclopedia of extracts.|page=787 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite encyclopedia  | last = Greenhill  | first = William Alexander  | contribution = Aetius  | editor-last = Smith  | editor-first = William  | title = [[Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology]]  | volume = 1  | pages = 53  | place = Boston, MA  | year = 1870
+[[File:Aetius Amideni (502-575).png|thumb|249x249px|Copy of the first three of his works on medicine. This copy was made in 1535.]]
-  | contribution-url = http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-bio/0062.html }}</ref> particularly distinguished by the extent of his erudition.<ref>{{cite book  | last = Dunglison  | first = Robley  | authorlink = Robley Dunglison  | title = History of Medicine from the Earliest Ages to the Commencement of the 19th Century  | publisher = Lindsay and Blakiston  | year = 1872  | location = Philadelphia  | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=yDwLsLawimAC&pg=PA183&dq=aetius+medical#PPA182,M1  | page = 182 }}</ref>  Historians are not agreed about his exact date.  He is placed by some writers as early as the 4th century; but it is plain from his own work that he did not write till the very end of the 5th or the beginning of the 6th, as he refers not only to Patriarch [[Cyril of Alexandria]], who died 444,<ref>''tetrab.'' iii. ''serm.'' i. 24, p. 464</ref> but also to Petrus ''archiater'', who could be identified with the physician of [[Theodoric the Great]],<ref>''tetrab.'' ii. ''serm.'' iii. 110, p. 357</ref> whom he defines a contemporary. He is himself quoted by [[Alexander of Tralles]],<ref>[[Alexander of Tralles]], xii. 8, p. 346</ref> who lived probably in the middle of the 6th century. He was probably a [[Christianity|Christian]],<ref name="ColónColón1999">{{cite book|last1=Colón|first1=A. R.|last2=Colón|first2=P. A.|title=Nurturing children: a history of pediatrics|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=i8NsAAAAMAAJ|accessdate=19 October 2012|date=January 1999|publisher=Greenwood Press|isbn=9780313310805|page=63}}</ref> which may account perhaps for his being confounded with [[Aëtius of Antioch]], a famous [[Arianism|Arian]] who lived in the time of the Emperor [[Julian the Apostate|Julian]]. He is amongst the earliest recorded Greek physicians of the [[Christian faith]].<ref name="Meade 1968">{{cite book |title= An introduction to the history of general surgery |last= Meade |first= Richard Hardaway |year= 1968 |publisher= Saunders |OCLC= 438114 |quote= Aetius of Amida, who lived in the sixth century A.D. and was the first Greek physician who was a Christian, had a chapter on aneurysms in his book on surgery. |page=108 }}</ref>
+'''Aëtius of Amida''' ({{IPAc-en|eɪ|ˈ|iː|ʃ|ə|s}}; {{langx|grc|Ἀέτιος Ἀμιδηνός}}; [[Latin]]: ''Aëtius Amidenus''; fl. mid-5th century to mid-6th century) was a [[Byzantine Greeks|Byzantine Greek]] physician and medical writer,<ref name="Mercuriale 2008">{{cite book |title= De arte gymnastica |last= Mercuriale |first= Girolamo |year= 2008 |publisher= L. S. Olschki |quote= Aetius of Amida (1st half, 6' century), Greek Galenist doctor, author of a major encyclopedia of extracts.|page=787 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite encyclopedia  | last = Greenhill  | first = William Alexander  | contribution = Aetius  | editor-last = Smith  | editor-first = William  | title = [[Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology]]  | volume = 1  | pages = 53  | place = Boston, MA  | year = 1870  | contribution-url = http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-bio/0062.html  | access-date = 2007-11-05  | archive-date = 2011-06-05  | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110605235209/http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-bio/0062.html  | url-status = dead  }}</ref> particularly distinguished by the extent of his erudition.<ref>{{cite book  | last = Dunglison  | first = Robley  | author-link = Robley Dunglison  | title = History of Medicine from the Earliest Ages to the Commencement of the 19th Century  | publisher = Lindsay and Blakiston  | year = 1872  | location = Philadelphia  | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=yDwLsLawimAC&q=aetius+medical&pg=PA183  | page = 182 }}</ref> His birth and death years are not known, but his writings appear to date from the end of the 5th century or the beginning of the 6th.
+Aëtius was probably a [[Christianity|Christian]].<ref name="ColónColón1999">{{cite book|last1=Colón|first1=A. R.|last2=Colón|first2=P. A.|title=Nurturing children: a history of pediatrics|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=i8NsAAAAMAAJ|access-date=19 October 2012|date=January 1999|publisher=Greenwood Press|isbn=9780313310805|page=63}}</ref> If so, he would be among the earliest recorded Greek Christian physicians.<ref name="Meade 1968">{{cite book |title= An introduction to the history of general surgery |last= Meade |first= Richard Hardaway |year= 1968 |publisher= Saunders |oclc= 438114 |quote= Aetius of Amida, who lived in the sixth century A.D. and was the first Greek physician who was a Christian, had a chapter on aneurysms in his book on surgery. |page=108 }}</ref>
+He is sometimes confused with [[Aëtius of Antioch]], a famous [[Arianism|Arian]] who lived in the time of the Emperor [[Julian the Apostate|Julian]].
 == Life ==
-Aëtius was born a [[Byzantine Greeks|Greek]] <ref name="Plant 2004">{{cite book |title=Women Writers of Ancient Greece and Rome: An Anthology |last= Plant |first= Ian Michael |year= 2004 |publisher= University of Oklahoma Press |isbn= 9780806136219 |quote= Aetius: A Greek from Amida (in Mesopotamia), who wrote on philosophy in the mid- sixth century AD in Alexandria.|page=229 }}</ref><ref name="Kueny 2013">{{cite book |title=Conceiving Identities: Maternity in Medieval Muslim Discourse and Practice |last= Kueny |first= Kathryn M. |year=2013 |publisher=SUNY Press |isbn=9781438447872 |quote= Greek physician Aetius of Amida (ca. sixth c. CE) likewise recommended rubbing an ointment made from pome— granate to prevent conception |page= 340}}</ref> and a native of [[Amida (Roman city)|Amida]] (modern [[Diyarbakır]], [[Turkey]]), a city of [[Mesopotamia]],<ref name="photius">[[Photios I of Constantinople|Photius]], cod. 221</ref> and studied at [[Alexandria]], which was the most famous medical school of the age.
+Aëtius was born a [[Byzantine Greeks|Greek]]<ref name="Plant 2004">{{cite book |title=Women Writers of Ancient Greece and Rome: An Anthology |last= Plant |first= Ian Michael |year= 2004 |publisher= University of Oklahoma Press |isbn= 9780806136219 |quote= Aetius: A Greek from Amida (in Mesopotamia), who wrote on philosophy in the mid- sixth century AD in Alexandria.|page=229 }}</ref><ref name="Kueny 2013">{{cite book |title=Conceiving Identities: Maternity in Medieval Muslim Discourse and Practice |last= Kueny |first= Kathryn M. |year=2013 |publisher=SUNY Press |isbn=9781438447872 |quote= Greek physician Aetius of Amida (ca. sixth c. CE) likewise recommended rubbing an ointment made from pome— granate to prevent conception |page= 340}}</ref> and a native of [[Amida (Roman city)|Amida]] (modern [[Diyarbakır]], [[Turkey]]), a city of [[Mesopotamia]],<ref name="photius">[[Photios I of Constantinople|Photius]], cod. 221</ref> and studied at [[Alexandria]], which was the most famous medical school of the age.
+Aëtius mentions Patriarch [[Cyril of Alexandria]], who died in 444,<ref>''tetrab.'' iii. ''serm.'' i. 24, p. 464</ref> and Petrus ''archiater'', probably the physician of [[Theodoric the Great]],<ref>''tetrab.'' ii. ''serm.'' iii. 110, p. 357</ref> whom he defines as a contemporary, so it appears that he wrote at the very end of the 5th century or the beginning of the 6th.  He is in turn quoted by [[Alexander of Tralles]],<ref>[[Alexander of Tralles]], xii. 8, p. 346</ref> who lived probably in the middle of the 6th century.
 Aëtius traveled and visited the copper mines of [[Soli, Cyprus]], [[Jericho]], and the [[Dead Sea]].
@@ Line 15: / Line 22: @@
 The division of Aëtius' work ''Sixteen Books on Medicine'' ({{lang|grc|Βιβλία Ἰατρικά Ἑκκαίδεκα}}) into four ''tetrabibli'' was not made by himself, but (as [[Johann Albert Fabricius|Fabricius]] observes) was the invention of some modern translator, as his way of quoting his own work is according to the numerical series of the books.  Although his work does not contain much original matter, and is heavily indebted to [[Galen]] and [[Oribasius]],<ref>{{cite book  | last =Withington  | first =Edward Theodore  | title =Medical History from the Earliest Times: A Popular History of the Healing Art  | publisher =Scientific Press  | year =1894
-  | url =https://books.google.com/books?id=WH7SZO2qpk4C&pg=PA130&dq=aetius+medical#PPA130,M1  | page =130 }}</ref> it is nevertheless one of the most valuable medical remains of antiquity, as being a very judicious compilation from the writings of many authors, many from the [[Library of Alexandria|Alexandrian Library]], whose works have been long since lost.<ref>{{cite journal  | last = Lawrence  | first = J.J.  | title = Medical brief  | journal = The Medical Brief: A Monthly Journal of Scientific Medicine and Surgery  | volume = 33  | pages = 166  | publisher = Harvard University  | location = Boston  | year = 1905  | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=5RYCAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA166&dq=aetius+medical  | accessdate = 2007-11-04 }}</ref>
+  | url =https://archive.org/details/medicalhistoryf00withgoog  | quote =aetius medical.  | page =[https://archive.org/details/medicalhistoryf00withgoog/page/n146 130] }}</ref> it is nevertheless one of the most valuable medical remains of antiquity, as being a very judicious compilation from the writings of many authors, many from the [[Library of Alexandria|Alexandrian Library]], whose works have long since been lost.<ref>{{cite journal  | last = Lawrence  | first = J.J.  | title = Medical brief  | journal = The Medical Brief: A Monthly Journal of Scientific Medicine and Surgery  | volume = 33  | pages = 166  | publisher = Harvard University  | location = Boston  | year = 1905  | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=5RYCAAAAYAAJ&q=aetius+medical&pg=PA166  | access-date = 2007-11-04 }}</ref>
 In the manuscript for book 8.13, the word {{lang|grc|ἀκμή}} (acme) is written as {{lang|grc|ἀκνή}}, the origin of the modern word [[acne]].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia | last =Kudlien | first =Franz | title =Aetius of Amida | encyclopedia = [[Dictionary of Scientific Biography]] | volume = 1 | pages =68–69  | publisher = Charles Scribner's Sons | location = New York | year = 1970 | isbn = 0-684-10114-9}}</ref>
-Aëtius is recorded as having developed a concoction for [[contraception]] consisting of [[aloe]], [[wallflower]] seed, [[black pepper|pepper]], and [[saffron]]. He is also known to have developed an [[abortifacient]] mixture, whose contents are not known.<ref>{{Cite book|title = Eve's Herbs: A History of Contraception and Abortion in the West|last = Riddle|first = John M.|publisher = Harvard University Press|year = 1997|isbn = 0-674-27026-6|location = |pages = 55, 203}}</ref>
+Aëtius is recorded as having developed a concoction for [[contraception]] consisting of [[aloe]], [[wallflower]] seed, [[black pepper|pepper]], and [[saffron]]. He is also known to have developed an [[abortifacient]] mixture, whose contents are not known.<ref>{{Cite book|title = Eve's Herbs: A History of Contraception and Abortion in the West|last = Riddle|first = John M.|publisher = Harvard University Press|year = 1997|isbn = 0-674-27026-6|pages = 55, 203}}</ref>
+==See also==
+* [[Aetia gens]]
 ==References==
@@ Line 28: / Line 38: @@
 ==External links==
 *[http://cmg.bbaw.de/epubl/online/editionen.html Olivieri's ''CMG'' Greek text (1935-1950)]
-*[https://books.google.com/books?id=dh9M-FiskWQC&printsec=frontcover&dq=thorndike+tetrabiblos+bacon+%22history+of+magic%22&source=bl&ots=MIPCTYvDdJ&sig=NEyHSusN2gwrkAwcZcvi_SDPVXU&hl=en&ei=t3fbS6R7wv3wBojuweED&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CAYQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=tetrabiblos%20aetius&f=false] History of Magic and Experimental Science, Part 2, by Lynn Thorndike who reviewed both Aetius and Galen
+*[https://books.google.com/books?id=dh9M-FiskWQC&q=tetrabiblos+aetius] History of Magic and Experimental Science, Part 2, by Lynn Thorndike who reviewed both Aetius and Galen
 {{Authority control}}
-{{SHORTDESC:6th-century Byzantine physician}}
 {{DEFAULTSORT:Aetius Amida}}
-[[Category:Byzantine physicians]]
+[[Category:5th-century Byzantine physicians]]
 [[Category:575 deaths]]
 [[Category:Ancient Greek science writers]]
-[[Category:6th-century Byzantine people]]
+[[Category:6th-century Byzantine physicians]]
-[[Category:Year of birth unknown]]
 [[Category:6th-century Byzantine scientists]]
+[[Category:5th-century Byzantine scientists]]
+[[Category:Year of birth unknown]]
+[[Category:5th-century Byzantine writers]]
 [[Category:6th-century Byzantine writers]]
-[[Category:6th-century physicians]]

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