Background
Agathinus Claudius was born in Sparta and probably lived in the 1st century AD, but the exact date of his birth in uncertain.
Sarcophagus with a Greek physician, Roman; Ostia, Italy, (48.76.1), Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Physician treating a patient (Attic red-figure aryballos, 480–470 BC).
Ancient Greek doctors tretaing a patient.
A fragment of an ancient Greek with the medicinal text.
Asclepius was a god of medicine & healing in ancient Greece, who represents the healing aspect of the medical arts. His daughters are Hygieia/Hygiene, goddess of health & sanitation, Iaso, goddess of recuperation, Aceso, goddess of the healing process, Aglæa, goddess of beauty & adornment & Panacea, goddess of universal remedy. He was one of Apollo’s sons, sharing with him the epithet Paean (“the Healer”). The rod of Asclepius, a snake-entwined staff, remains a symbol of medicine today.
“Stela of the Medica” portraying a Gallo-Roman female physician. Funerary stela discovered in Metz, France. Only part of the inscription remains, but still shows the word “MEDICA.” The medica, standing draped in her palla, holds a rectangular object in her left hand, either a medicine box or a book. 2nd century CE. Photo courtesy of Musée de La Cour d’Or Metz Métropole.
Physician treating a patient (Attic red-figure aryballos, 480–470 BC).
Giclee Print: Greek Physician Erasistratos with an Assistant, 1224 : 24x18in.
Ancient Greek doctors tretaing a patient.
PERGAMON in Mysia 150BC Ancient Greek Coin ASCLEPIUS Medicine.
Statue of Asklepios, Epidauros Museum Asclepius is the Greek demigod of medicine . According to mythology, he was able to restore the health of the sick and bring the dead back to life. Snake was sacred and used them in healing rituals to honor Asclepius, as snake venom was thought to be remedial and their skin-shedding was viewed as a symbol of rebirth and renewal.
A fragment of an ancient Greek with the medicinal text.
This is the symbol we often associate with medicine. It is called the kerykeion or κηρύκειον in Greek, or the caduceus in Latin. In antiquity the caduceus was associated with Hermes.
Asclepius was a god of medicine & healing in ancient Greece, who represents the healing aspect of the medical arts. His daughters are Hygieia/Hygiene, goddess of health & sanitation, Iaso, goddess of recuperation, Aceso, goddess of the healing process, Aglæa, goddess of beauty & adornment & Panacea, goddess of universal remedy. He was one of Apollo’s sons, sharing with him the epithet Paean (“the Healer”). The rod of Asclepius, a snake-entwined staff, remains a symbol of medicine today.
Asclepius / Asklepios / Aesclepius is the god of medicine and healing in ancient Greek religion. He represents the healing aspect of the medical arts. His daughters are Hygieia, Iaso, Aceso, Aglæa/Ægle, and Panacea. He was associated with the Roman/Etruscan god Vediovis. He was one of Apollo's sons, sharing with him the epithet Paean ("the Healer").
Bronze finial of a kerykeion (herald's staff) Period: Archaic Date: late 6th–early 5th century B.C. Culture: Greek.
The statue of Aesculapius, god of medicine, at the remains of his Greek temple at Empúries, Spain.
“Stela of the Medica” portraying a Gallo-Roman female physician. Funerary stela discovered in Metz, France. Only part of the inscription remains, but still shows the word “MEDICA.” The medica, standing draped in her palla, holds a rectangular object in her left hand, either a medicine box or a book. 2nd century CE. Photo courtesy of Musée de La Cour d’Or Metz Métropole.
Archigenes, c.75 - c.129, Roman physician. who may have been a pupil of Agathinus.
Greek: Αγαθινος
medical practitioner physician
Agathinus Claudius was born in Sparta and probably lived in the 1st century AD, but the exact date of his birth in uncertain.
Agathinus was a Spartan physician who lived in Rome, where he was connected with the family of the Stoic philosopher L. Annaeus Comutus. His association with known Stoics was certainly not fortuitous, since Agathinus is known to have been a practitioner of the Pneumatic school of medicine founded by Athenaeus of Attalia under the influence of Poseidonius, another Stoic philosopher. Although the identity of Agathinus’ medical teacher is not known, it was certainly not Athenaeus of Attalia (JL 50 B.C.) himself.
Agathinus founded his own school, which he called episynthetic (i.e., eclectic). In direct opposition to the schismatic spirit of Imperial Roman medicine, the episynthetic school championed the intellectual unity of medicine as interpreted by Galen.
None of Agathinus’ original writings survive intact, but antique sources mention a work on the pulse, dedicated to his pupil Herodot; a work on fever, especially the kind he called “semitertian fever”; and, finally, a work on hellebore. All of these show, therefore, that Agathinus was neither a narrow specialist nor a dubious charlatan, as were so many of his colleagues in Imperial Rome. On the contrary, although only scant information about Agathinus’ life and a few fragments of his writings remain, it is apparent that he was among the really important and influential physicians of the intellectually rich first century A.D.
Agathinu's major achievement was in being the founder of the Episynthetic school (Episynthetici), which was an ancient school of medicine in ancient Greece and Rome. He also may have taught the physicians Archigenes and Herodotus. Fragments of his doctrines are reported by Galen and Oribasius, amongst others. He wrote influential works on pulsation, on semi-tertian fevers, and on the use of hellebore; little is now known of their contents.
The practitioners of the Eclectic school of medicine selected from each sect the opinions which seemed to them most probable. They seemed to have been a branch of the Methodic school. They were founded, it would seem by Archigenes. Some of the opinions of these physicians are found in the fragments preserved by Galen, Oribasius, Aëtius, etc.; but the doctrines they adopted remain unknown. A closely related school was the Episynthetic school (Episynthetici), so called because they heaped up in a manner (episyntithêmi), and adopted for their own opinions different, and even opposite, schools.
Quotes from others about the person
Agathinus had many medical disciples, of whom the best known was the celebrated Archigenes, who described his teacher’s scientific attitude: “Therefore Agathinus—who was particular about everything and never relied on mere eclecticism, but for safety’s sake always required empirical verification—administered hellebore (elleborus) to a dog, which therewith vomited”.
Athenaeus of Attalia (1st century AD), was a physician, and the founder of the Pneumatic school of medicine.
Archigenes was a Roman physician from Syria. He is reputed to have established the practise of dentistry by using drills to treat dental infections. He also studied insomnia and nervous diseases.
