Of Medicine, in Eight Books

About this book

The work is a scholarly edition of Aulus Cornelius Celsus’s medical treatise, presented as eight distinct books each accompanied by numbered explanatory notes written by the author himself. The edition preserves the original’s intricate apparatus: several hundred alphabetically labeled footnotes, asterisks indicating uncertain quantities, and archaic characters that require Unicode‑compatible fonts for proper display. The front matter includes a 1756 dedication to a leading surgeon, a preface that argues for the continued relevance of ancient observations, and extensive commentary on Celsus’s sources, style, and the uncertain details of his biography. The text is reproduced faithfully, retaining the inconsistent punctuation, capitalization, and spelling of the 1814 translation, with a separate list of corrections appended at the end.

Written in the formal, concise Latin of the early Imperial period, the translation and notes are rendered in eighteenth‑century English prose that mirrors the original’s elegance. Readers with an interest in the history of medicine, classical scholars, or anyone who enjoys detailed scholarly apparatus will appreciate the blend of ancient medical theory and the meticulous editorial work that makes the eight‑book compilation accessible.