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Medicine

The early attempts of Roman medicine relied heavily upon their agricultural heritage. The head of the household, presumably because of his supposed age and wisdom, dispensed many of the home grown remedies and cures to his family. Wonderful 'cure alls' such as sheeps wool (soaked in all manner of substances) and cabbage were driven as the great medicines of the early republic. Mostly due to the agricultural heritage of Rome many of the cures given to livestock were frequently given to humans who displayed similar symptoms.

As Rome developed three clear divisions could be found in Roman medicine. These division were; the home grown remedies of agriculture; the observations and superstitions of the pater familias; and lastly the work of the predecessors of the Romans, most notably the Etruscans and Greeks.

During the 1st and 2nd Centuries AD the doctor was very much a part, although a frequently mistrusted part, of Roman society. Most common among the doctors were Greek freedmen, which created many difficulties for the Romans who saw this as an infiltration and potentially damaging way of life for Roman society. As much as this was a mistrust of many aspects of Greek culture by the Romans it may have also found some of its roots in the first annoted doctor in Rome, Arcagathus from Peloponnese who arrived in 219BC. Arcagathus was remembered among the Romans as Carnifex, the executioner.


Either way the old ways gave way to the new and eventually the medicus was a common scene in many a Roman town. Paid directly for their work by patients who spread word of their successes or failures, they found themselves very much rooted into Roman society. To become a doctor though there was no medical exam, no governing body and no education, theoretically anyone could declare themselves a doctor and have go.

Surgeon or midwife—Roman medicine was far advanced from that before or after

By far the most well known doctor of Rome was Galen, a physician who learnt his trade in the gladiator schools, the military and eventually in the Emperors household. He is frequently known as the 'father of medicine' and theorised on a great deal of, then, ground breaking ideas such as circulation. this lead to the glory days of Roman medicine. Although still very simple compared to much of our modern understanding, as much as could be learnt via observational study was. Surgical tools and some practices are exactly the same today as they were then. In our civilian medical display you will find a great many of the tools and ideas of the Roman doctor an surgeon.