Canon Medicinae Avicenna

Canon Medicinae Avicenna

Spanning over 1,000 pages, a wonderful historical world unfolds before the viewer’s eyes: topics from the fields of anatomy, medicine, pharmacy, and much more are depicted in vibrantly colorful illuminations. Among other things, the book features a beautiful calendar with the signs of the zodiac and typical depictions of the labours of the month, as they are also found in books of hours. Particularly interesting, however, are the depictions of medical treatments, embedded in contemporary scenes set against charming architectural backdrops and landscapes. Notable examples include the depiction of a “pharmacy” and the use of healing baths.

Avicenna’s Work in a Luxurious Hebrew Edition

These exquisitely crafted illuminations were created within the context of the School of Ferrara and date to the first half of the 15th century, presumably around the year 1440. What makes the manuscript so special, aside from its beautiful artistic decoration—ten full-page miniatures and 498 pages featuring plant and animal motifs—is its text: the 13th-century Hebrew translation of the Canon of Medicine by Natan ha-Meati. The lavish manuscript in the University Library of Bologna is the only document that preserves this translation in its entirety.

Perhaps the Most Important Physician of the Middle Ages

Abû Ali al Husaya Ibn Sīnā (980–1037), Latinized Avicenna, is considered one of the most important and influential scholars of medieval medicine. He came from the historical region of Greater Khorasan, a region in Central Asia that today lies between northeastern Iran and northwestern Afghanistan. His writings shaped medical teachings in Europe and the Islamic world for centuries. His philosophical treatises were also widely received, for example by Sufi mystics.

A Milestone in the History of Medicine

Avicenna’s famous Canon of Medicine systematically summarizes the medical knowledge of antiquity and the early Middle Ages and thus unites Greco-Roman, Persian, Chinese, and Indian traditions into a coherent and comprehensive body of work. Organized into five books or chapters, it covers a wide range of topics: from anatomy, the description and diagnosis of diseases and their treatment to the preparation and use of various remedies.
Of particular significance are, among other things, the descriptions of the treatment of infectious and non-infectious diseases such as cancer and tuberculosis, the explanations of the influence of climate and the environment on health, and the accurate description of the anatomy of the eyeball. Avicenna was also one of the first scholars to establish rules for how a new drug should be tested before being prescribed to a patient and to recognize the connection between a person’s emotions and their physical health, discovering the positive physical and psychological effects of music on people.

A Transregional Standard Work

This Canon became the very standard work of medicine and influenced, among others, the famous School of Salerno in Europe. Its Latin translation, in particular, contributed to this by making the work accessible to European scholars. Gerhard of Cremona was the first to produce such a translation in the 12th century. A century later, this was followed by Natan ha-Meati’s Hebrew translation, which likewise made the text accessible to Jewish scholars.