Ancient Medicine

Catalog description

This course introduces the healing traditions of the ancient Mediterranean world from the second millennium BCE to the end of the Roman Empire. It focuses on medicine among the ancient Egyptians, Mesopotamians, Greeks, and Romans, considering the diseases patients had, the instruments and treatments doctors used, how doctors understood disease and anatomy, the status of doctors in society, the intellectual origins of Greco-Roman medicine, and the archaeological and literary evidence for pathologies in the ancient world. Toward this end, students read medical literature from Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, and Rome, asking not only what these texts tell us about ancient medical practices, but also what they indicate, more generally, about the cultures in which they were produced. We will also consider specific archaeological case studies that demonstrate pathologies and other afflictions evident in the skeletal and iconographic record. Specific topics include ancient theories about anatomy and physiology, the relationship between medicine and religion, and the methodology of medical decision-making. Credit Hour s : 3 Recommended: AMS 2100 , AMS 2200