Medical Epitome

This chapter deals with the last two books of the Medical Epitome, which focus on pharmacology. John’s material presents a unique amalgamation of earlier Greek and Byzantine sources with recently introduced Arabic pharmacological lore. It is argued that, unlike the first four books, the last two books may be addressed not only to philiatroi but also to the expert reader, since they provide a revision of the subject that was much needed in late Byzantium. Special emphasis is given to the role of experience (peira) in the pharmacological part, which, unlike in the first four books, plays an important role in the selection process here, as it is often highlighted by John himself. The analysis then shifts to John’s sources, including Galen’s On the Composition of Drugs According to Places and also the Greek translation (Ephodia tou Apodēmountos) of the famous medieval Arabic medical text by Ibn al-Jazzār Zād al-Musāfir wa-Qūt al-Ḥāḍir, more commonly known by its Latin title Viaticum. A particular section is devoted to John’s adaptation of Arabic pharmacology, including his many recipes for sugar-based potions and his reference to oriental materia medica. In the first case, a potential unedited source ascribed to an otherwise unknown author, one Chariton, is identified. As regards oriental ingredients such as zedoary, galangal, cubeb pepper, and various kinds of myrobalan, a further contextualization is attempted by making use of other contemporary non-medical sources, especially merchants’ accounts, which show that many of these substances were readily available in Constantinople, although usually at a high price.