The Story of LondonWheatley, Henry B. (Henry Benjamin)
History
The Story of London
Wheatley, Henry B. (Henry Benjamin)
London (England) -- History
There was no school of anatomy or surgery throughout England in the age
of Chaucer and Wyclyf, but the medical schools of Salerno, Naples and
Montpellier were attended by Englishmen. St. Luke is usually considered
as the patron saint of the medical profession, but in the Middle Ages he
was to a great extent dispossessed by St. Cosmas and St. Damian,[130]
two brothers, who practised as physicians in Cilicia, and were martyred
in the early part of the fourth century. These were the patron saints of
the Company of Barber Surgeons, but the Fellowship of Surgeons, whose
history has been written by Mr. D'Arcy Power,[131] kept St. Luke's Day
as well as that of St. Cosmas and St. Damian.
Chaucer found room for the 'Doctor of Physick' in his wonderful gallery
of mediæval portraits, and a very vivid picture he gives of the studies
and practice of this worthy. It is drawn with the poet's tolerant
humour, but he ends by saying that the doctor loved his gold, and all
accounts appear to corroborate this opinion.
'With us ther was a Doctour of Phisik,
In all this world ne was ther noon hym lik,
To speke of phisik and surgerye;
For he was grounded in astronomye.
He kepte his pacient a ful greet deel
In hourés, by his magyk natureel.
Wel koude he fortunen the ascendent
Of his ymáges for his pacient.
He knew the cause of everich maladye,
Were it of hoot or cold, or moyste or drye,
And where they engendred and of what humour;
He was a verray parfit practisour.
The cause y-knowe and of his harm the roote,
Anon he yaf the siké man his boote [remedy].
Ful redy hadde he his apothecaries
To sende him droggés and his letuaries,
For ech of hem made oother for to wynne.
Hir frendshipe was nat newè to begynne.
Wel knew he the oldé Esculapius
And Deyscorides and eek Rufus,
Olde Ypocras, Haly and Galyen,
Serapion, Razis and Avycen,
Averrois, Damascien and Constantyn,
Bernard and Gatésden and Gilbertyn.
Of his dieté mesurable was he,
For it was of no superfluitee,
But of greet norissyng and digestible.
His studie was but litel on the Bible.
In sangwyn and in pers he clad was al,
Lynéd with taffata and with sendal.
And yet he was but esy of dispence,
He kepté that he wan in pestilence.
For gold in phisik is a cordial,
Therefore he lovéde gold in special.'
Chaucer here shows great learning and knowledge of the history of
medicine. He gives a full list of the Greek and Arab authorities, and
also of the men living nearer to his own day. Bernard was Bernardus,
Gordonius the professor of medicine at Montpellier in Chaucer's time,
Gilbertyn was Gilbertus Anglicus and Gatesden was John of
Gaddesden.[132]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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