5. THE COMMENTATORS AND OTHER ANCIENT
AUTHORITIES.
About the time of Nero a glossary of unusual
Hippocratic terms was written by Erotian, which
[p. xxxvi]
still survives. Erotian was not the first to compose
such a work, nor was he the last, the most famous of
his successors being Galen. An examination of this
glossary, combined with testimony derived from
Galen, throws some light on the history of the
Hippocratic collection. It will be well to quote a
passage from Erotian's introduction, which contains
a fairly complete list of commentators.
Παρὰ ταύτην γέ τοι τὴν αἰτίαν πολλοὶ τῶν ἐλλογίμων
οὐκ ἰατρῶν μόνον,
ἀλλὰ καὶ γραμματικῶν ἐς1πούδας1αν
ἐξηγής1ας1θαι τὸν ἄνδρα καὶ τὰς2 λέξεις2 ἐπὶ τὸ κοινότερον
τῆς2 ὁμιλίας2 ἀγαγεῖν.
Ξενόκριτος2 γὰρ ὁ Κῷος2,
γραμματικὸς2
ὤν,
ὥς2 φης1ιν ὁ Ταραντῖνος2 Ἡρακλείδης2,
πρῶτος2
ἐπεβάλετο τὰς2 τοιαύτας2 ἐξαπλοῦν φωνάς2.
ὡς2 δὲ κυὶ ὁ
Κιτιεὺς2 Ἀπολλώνιος2 ἱς1τορεῖ,
καὶ Καλλίμαχος2 ὁ ἀπὸ τῆς2
Ἡροφίλου οἰκίας2.
μεθ̓ ὅν φας1ι τὸν Ταναγραῖον Βακχεῖον
ἐπιβαλεῖν τῇ πραγματείᾳ καὶ διὰ τριῶν ς1υντάξεων πληρῶς1αι
τὴν προθες1μίαν,
πολλὰς2 παραθέμενον εἰς2 τοῦτο μαρτυρίας2
ποιητῶν,
ᾧ δὴ τὸν ἐμπειρικὸν ς1υγχρονής1αντα Φιλῖνον διὰ
ἑξαβίβλου πραγματείας2 ἀντειπεῖν,
καίπερ Ἐπικλέους2 τοῦ
Κρητὸς2 ἐπιτεμομένου τὰς2 Βακχείου λέξεις2 διὰ . . . ς1υντάξεων,
Ἀπολλωνίου τε τοῦ Ὄφεως2 ταὐτὸ ποιής1αντος2,
καὶ
Διος1κορίδου τοῦ Φακᾶ πᾶς1ι τούτοις2 ἀντειπόντος2 δι᾽ ἑπτὰ
βιβλίων,
Ἀπολλωνίου τε τοῦ Κιτιέως2 ὀκτωκαίδεκα πρὸς2
τὰ τοῦ Ταραντίνου τρία πρὸς2 Βακχεῖον διαγράψαντος2,
καὶ
Γλαυκίου τοῦ ἐμπειρικοῦ δι'
ἑνὸς2 πολυς1τίχου πάνυ καὶ
κατὰ ς1τοιχεῖον πεποιημένου ταὐτὸ ἐπιτηδεύς1αντος2 πρός2 τε
τούτοις2 Λυς1ιμάχου τοῦ Κῴου κ'
βιβλίων ἐκπονής1αντος2
πραγματείαν μετὰ τοῦ τρία μὲν γράψαι πρὸς2 Κυδίαν τὸν
Ἡροφίλειον,
τριὰ δὲ πρὸς2 Δημήτριον.
τῶν δὲ γραμματικῶν
οὐκ ἔς1τιν ὅς1τις2 ἐλλόγιμος2 φανεὶς2 παρῆλθε τὸν ἄνδρα.
καὶ γὰρ ὁ ἀναδεξάμενος2 αὐτὸν Ἐυφορίων πᾶς1αν ἐς1πούδας1ε
λέξιν ἐξηγής1ας1θαι διὰ βιβλίων ς2´,
περὶ ὧν γεγράφας1ιν
[p. xxxvii]
Ἀρις1τοκλῆς2 καὶ Ἀρις1τέας2 οἱ Π̔όδιοι.
ἔτι δὲ Ἀρίς1ταρχος2
καὶ μετὰ πάντας2 Ἀντίγονος2 καὶ Δίδυμος2 οἱ Ἀλεξανδρεῖς2.--pp.
4, 5 (Nachmanson).
A good account of the commentators is given by
Littré, vol. I., pp. 83 foll. Herophilus (about 300 B.C.）
appears to have been the first ; Bacchius his pupil
edited
Epidemics III., wrote notes on three other
Hippocratic works, and compiled a glossary. A
great number of short fragments of the works of
Bacchius still survive. The most celebrated commentator,
a medical man as well as a scholar, was
Heraclides of Tarentum, who lived rather later than
Bacchius.
Erotian in his introduction gives the following list
of Hippocratic works :--
ς1ημειωτικὰ μὲν οὖν ἐς1τι ταῦτα: Προγνως1τικόν,
Προρρητικὸν
ά καὶ β́ (
ὡς2 οὐκ ἔς1τιν Ἱπποκράτους2,
ἐν ἄλλοις2
δείξομεν),
Περὶ χυμῶν.
αἰτιολογικὰ δὲ καὶ φυς1ικά: Περὶ
φυς1ῶν,
Περὶ φύς1εως2 ἀνθρώπου,
Περὶ ἱερᾶς2 νός1ου,
Περὶ
φύς1εως2 παιδίου,
Περὶ τόπων καὶ ὡρῶν.
θεραπευτικὰ δέ:
τῶν μὲν εἰς2 χειρουργίαν ἀνηκόντων: Περὶ ἀγμῶν,
Περὶ
ἄρθρων,
Περὶ ἑλκῶν,
Περὶ τραυμάτων καὶ βελῶν,
Περὶ τῶν
ἐν κεφαλῆ τραυμάτων,
Κατὰ ἰητρεῖον,
Μοχλικόν,
Περὶ
αἱμορροΐδων καὶ ς1υρίγγων.
εἰς2 δίαιταν: Περὶ νούς1ων ά
β̓,
Περὶ πτις1άνης2,
Περὶ τόπων τῶν κατὰ ἄνθρωπον,
Γυναικείων ά β́,
Περὶ τροφῆς2,
Περὶ ἀφόρων,
Περὶ ὑδάτων.
ἐπίμικτα δέ ἐς1τι ταῦτα: Ἀφορις1μοί,
Ἐπιδημίαι ζ.
τῶν
δ'
εἰς2 τὸν περὶ τέχνης2 τεινόντων λόγον: Ὅρκος2,
Νόμος2,
Περὶ τέχνης2,
Περὶ ἀρχαίας2 ἰατρικῆς2.
Πρες1βευτικὸς2 γὰρ
καὶ Ἐπιβώμιος2 φιλόπατριν μᾶλλον ἢ ἰατρὸν ἐμφαίνους1ι
τὸν ἄνδρα.--p. 9 (Nachmanson).
The actual glossary, however, refers to more works
than these, as will appear from the following table.
[p. xxxviii]
LISTS OF THE HIPPOCRATIC COLLECTION
[Works known to the authors, not necessarily attributed
by them to Hippocrates.]
[p. xxxix]
Erotian knew also
περὶ τραυμάτων καὶ βελῶν, now lost.
The double XX means "by quotation, but not in the list."
[p. xl]
N.B.--The list of Bacchius is made by noting
where in the Hippocratic collection occur the
strange words upon which he commented ; that of
Celsus by a comparison of similar passages ; that
of Erotian from his list, by noting where occur the
γλῶς1ς1αι explained by him, and from fragments in
scholia (see E. Nachmanson's edition, pp. 99 foll.).
Of course the list of Celsus is dubious from its
nature, and Bacchius may have known many more
treatises than those we are sure he did know.
The recently discovered history of medicine called
Menon's
Iatrica1 contains several references to
Hippocrates. Diels is of opinion that they are very
erroneous.
2
In V. the writer says that according to Hippocrates
diseases are caused by "airs" (
φῦς1αι), a statement
which seems to be taken from
περὶ φυς1ῶν, VI.
98 foll. Littré, and the doctrine is described in V.
and VI. In VII. Hippocrates is said to hold doctrines
which are taken from
Nature of Man, VI. 52 foll.
Littré. In VIII. occur references to
Places in Man,
VI. 276, 294 Littré, and
Glands, VIII. 564 Littré.
In XIX. occur references to
Nature of Man, VI. 38
Littré, but the physician named is Polybus.
