The Alphabet of Galen: Pharmacy from Antiquity to the Middle Ages

The Alphabet of Galen is a critical edition and English translation of a text

describing, in alphabetical order, nearly three hundred natural products - including

metals, aromatics, animal materials, and herbs - and their medicinal uses. A Latin

translation of earlier Greek writings on pharmacy that have not survived, it circulated

among collections of ‘authorities’ on medicine, including Hippocrates, Galen of Pergamun,

Soranus, and Ps. Apuleius.

This work presents interesting linguistic features,

including otherwise unattested Greek and Latin technical terms and unique pharmacological

descriptions. Nicholas Everett provides a window onto the medieval translation of ancient

science and medieval conceptions of pharmacy. With a comprehensive scholarly apparatus

and a contextual introduction, The Alphabet of Galen is a major resource for

understanding the richness and diversity of medical history.