Mene'crates
2. TIBERIUS CLAUDIUS QUIRINA (
Κουίρεινα 1) MENECRATES, a physician mentioned in a Greek inscription (Gruter,
Inscript. p. 581.9), is no doubt the same person who is frequently quoted by Galen.
He lived in the former part of the first century after Christ, and was physician to some of the emperors, probably to Tiberius and Claudins.
He enjoyed a great reputation, and composed more than 150 medical works, of which only a few fragments remain.
He was the inventor of the wellknown plaister called
diachylon (
i. e. διὰ Χυλῶν), and his directions for preparing it were put into verse by Damocrates. (Galen,
de Compos. Medicom. sec. Gen. 7.9, 10, vol. xiii. pp. 995, &c.)
In consequence of his having observed how easily the signs and contractions used in medical formulae were mistaken by careless transcribers, he wrote the quantities, &c. in his prescriptions at full length; but Galen tells us (
l.c.) that his carefulness did not much benefit posterity, as his works were afterwards written with the usual contractions. The Menecrates Zeophletensis (or native of Zeophleta?) quoted by Caelius Aurelianus (
De Morb. Chron. 1.4, p. 323) may be the same person as the preceding.
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W.A.G]
