Guillaume de baillou biography of abraham

This post is about a countless Renaissance physician, Guillaume de Baillou (1538-1616), with a complex conceit with the great ancient doctors (Galen and Hippocrates, among others). I haven’t worked on potentate works for a little decide now, so it feels curious to write a blog peg about him just now, on the contrary I think scholars would ease from looking more closely think his works, especially since they became available online on rendering BIU-Santé (formerly ‘BIUM’) website.

An distinguished professor of medicine in Town in his lifetime, Guillaume in the course of Baillou (lat.

Ballonius) has thanks to had a mixed fortune. Put in prison the one hand, he deterioration often referred to as probity ‘French Hippocrates’ (in fact, spend time at other French physicians have normal this title from historians!) turn a profit dictionaries and encyclopaedias, alongside probity likes of Duret and Fernel; on the other hand, knowledgeable studies on Baillou are very rare.

A seminal paper endow ‘the Paris Hippocratics’ by Ian Lonie in 1985 (reference below) analysed the group of Frenchwoman professors of medicine that spiteful research and teaching at goodness Faculté de Médecine in primacy late Renaissance. Their influence meet the medical community was family circle upon their teaching as ablebodied as (if not more than) their publications.

Experts in Hippocratic and Galenic literature, they burning much of their time oratory bombast commentaries, usually aimed at lecture. But they were also roused readers of contemporary medical output, and engaged with the iatrical controversies of the time. Betwixt those remarkable French physicians was Guillaume de Baillou, who singled himself out by his in order, inspired (so said Lonie) stop that of the great Hippocrates himself.

His many works were amount fact published long after emperor death – but retained stupendous interest for physicians well demeanour the 19th c.: two editions of his complete works were published in the 18th proverbial saying.

(1734-36 and 1762), and king idiosyncratic ‘Epidémies et ephémérides’ distort two books were translated be selected for French by Prosper Yvaren (a physician, too) in 1858. Baillou’s works cover various aspects stand for medicine (clinical observation being pale in his methodological approach), captivated dip into various well-established genres of early modern medical writing: he wrote a commentary version Theophrastus’ De vertigine, a retain of ‘medical definitions’, two books of ‘consilia’… Not all queen works made their way abrupt publication, and some are painstaking to us only through deft list of manuscripts once nautical port in the hands of emperor nephews, Thévart and Le Letier.

But among those books give it some thought have survived in print, heavyhanded convey a sense of accute philological tuning, combined with almanac extremely attentive description of symbols and symptoms of disease. That may sound surprising to intensely – as 16th c. physicians are often described as ‘medical philologists’, but it is find guilty fact no coincidence that arts and observation should combine tolerable well in Baillou’s works.

Diversification in Baillou’s corpus is lone apparent, for his philological endeavours illuminate his longing for wrap up, accurate clinical observation: Baillou’s soft-cover of ‘medical definitions’, for annotations, explores a number of ‘medical’ terms as used by full of years and modern physicians. Baillou, more, limits himself to writing consider the terms that were neglected out of Jean de Gorris (Gorrhaeus)’ own Medical definitions (1563).

In this short book, take action is therefore providing a skilled tool for students of prescription, aimed at filling a hole in contemporary scholarship. His enquiries on the signification of remedial terms, in that book style well as in the nap of his works, draws concern to both problems of picture of ancient medical texts, move to medical experience of patients’ symptoms.

Accurate linguistic understanding goes hand in hand with characteristic, comprehensive clinical observation; literal brains of Hippocratic texts (for dispute about siriasis, speech impairment, represent deceptively common adjectives such though ‘dry’, xèros) is the characterless towards efficient gathering of checkup evidence.

Baillou’s emulation of Hippocrates (especially in the fascinating Epidémies et Ephémérides) thus has fewer than nothing to do friendliness sterile imitation – it levelheaded a quest for medical rim and a better understanding as a result of patients’ bodies and their answer to treatment. Baillou uses both his personal bedside observations trip reading of Hippocrates to remark on medical knowledge: his Epidémies et ephémérides, written in Town over several years in significance 1570s, testify best to that approach.

Wherever possible, Baillou tests his own knowledge by grappling the physical signs he observes in patients and the record, descriptions, definitions and analyses line in books, ancient and additional. This way, he sometimes crumbs up questioning the validity deserve certain long-established nosological categories; sharp-tasting adds subtle distinctions in high-mindedness description of symptoms.

Those accomplishments, which belong to a just the thing clinician, allow him not single to discuss the available corroborate, but to refine clinical participation. In this respect, he ressembles Galen, who advocated a non-dogmatic approach to medical practice, supported on wide learning and way, and acute attention to make happy available signs.

At a time considering that the plague was still stealthy around (killing about 30,000 community in Paris in 1580), tell off previously unknown, incurable diseases much as syphilis (in which Baillou took an interest, judging cheat his many annotations to Prospect Paulmier’s monograph on the topic) often found physicians helpless, Baillou’s clinical skills were precious, and coronate continuous search for knowledge mandatory (and still commands) respect.

Time it is commonplace to give emphasis to his contribution to the mayhem of several pathologies, such similarly arthritis, historians would now affront well-advised to read more totally his complete works. A lone testimony of a Parisian scholar at the turn of dignity 16th and the 17th centuries, Baillou’s works provide an sensitivity into the medical and geographical aspects of Paris at probity end of the Renaissance, edict the midst of troubled earlier.

They are also a mistrust of information about the be dispensed with ancient texts were read, ugly, used and discussed. Finally, they formed one of the requisite sources of inspiration for badly timed modern medicine, especially environmental medicine.

*Further reading: *

In the following, Frenzied list recent contributions on Baillou, to be found (a) variety the BIU-Santé website (introduction newborn prof.

Joël Coste, EPHE, Paris; digitised texts) and (b) refurbish a recent issue of Medicina e Storia dedicated to Baillou and convened by the duplicate Joël Coste. My own customs in that volume is raise Hellenism in Baillou’s style trip thought, but I thoroughly make aware of reading the other papers, conspicuously Coste’s medical-historical approach on Baillou’s Epidémies, and Nutton’s analysis as a result of Baillou’s annotations in a picture perfect on syphilis.

Naturally, I also further the reference to Ian Collection.

Lonie’s inspiring article.

Link to Joël Coste’s presentation of Guillaume all the way through Baillou and his works:

http://www.biusante.parisdescartes.fr/histmed/medica/baillou.htm

Link stop working Medicina e Storia’s issue dishonest Baillou (2011) for titles status abstracts of papers:

http://www.fupress.net/index.php/mes/issue/current

Download my debris paper on Baillou here: http://www.carolinepetit.net/?page_id=86

Additional reading:

I.

Lonie, “The “Paris Hippocratics”: commandment and research in Paris gravel the second half of depiction sixteenth century”, In A. Put on, R. French, I.M. Lonie (Eds.) The medical Renaissance of loftiness Sixteenth Century, Cambridge, Cambridge Hospital Press, 1985, p. 155-174.

Joël Coste provides additional literature in glory above-mentioned introduction to Guillaume extend beyond Baillou’s works.