De materia medica by pedanius dioscorides biography
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De materia medica
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De materia medica
1st century pharmacopoeia of medicinal plants and medicines by Pedanius Dioscorides
This article is about a book by Dioscorides. For the body of medical knowledge, see Materia medica.
De materia medica (Latin name for the Greek work Περὶ ὕλης ἰατρικῆς, Peri hulēs iatrikēs, both meaning "On Medical Material") is a pharmacopoeia of medicinal plants and the medicines that can be obtained from them. The five-volume work was written between 50 and 70 CE by Pedanius Dioscorides, a Greek physician in the Roman army. It was widely read for more than 1,500 years until supplanted by revised herbals in the Renaissance, making it one of the longest-lasting of all natural history and pharmacology books.
The work describes many drugs known to be effective, including aconite, aloes, colocynth, colchicum, henbane, opium and squill. In total, about 600 plants are covered, along with some animals and mineral substances, and around 1000 medicines made from them.
De materia medica was circulated as illustrated manuscripts, copied by hand, in Greek, Latin, and Arabic throughout the medieval period. From the 16th century onwards, Dioscorides' text was translated into Italian, German, Spanish, French, and into English in 1655. It served as the foundation for herbal
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Pedanius Dioscorides
(c. 40–c.90 ad) Greek physician
Little is known of the life of Dioscorides except that he was born in Anazarbus (now in Turkey) and became a surgeon to Emperor Nero's armies, having most probably learned his skills at Alexandria and Tarsus. Many writings are attributed to him but the only book for which his authorship is undisputed is De materia medica (On Medicine). This pharmacopeia remained the standard medical text until the 17th century, undergoing many revisions and additions and greatly influencing both Western and Islamic cultures. It describes animal derivatives and minerals used therapeutically but is most important for the description of over 600 plants, including notes on their habitat and the methods of preparation and medicinal use of the drugs they contain. Many of the common and scientific plant names in use today originate from Dioscorides, and the yam family, Dioscoreaceae, is named for him.