Conrad Gessner
Historiae animalium liber III qui est de Avium natura - 1555
De Gallina
transcribed by Fernando Civardi - translated by Elio Corti
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Amylon datur
cum ovo his qui sanguinem reiecerint: in vesicae vero dolore, semuncia
amyli cum ovo et passi tribus ovis (ea nimirum passi mensura, quantam
tres ovorum testae caperent) suffervefacta{,} a balineo, Plin[1].
Ad vomitum nimium reprimendum sulphuris vivi pusillum, et ramenti de
cornu cervi tantumdem, in ovo sorbili tritum et permixtum bibi utile
est, Marcellus. Sulfur cum ovo sorptum expurgat in icteris, ut legitur
in libello de cura icteri qui Galeno tribuitur. {Tussem} <Tussim>
quamvis gravem maiorum natu intra quinque dies, parvulorum etiam intra
triduum sanat, qui sulphuris triti quantum tribus digitis capere potest,
in ovo semicocto sorbili per triduum ieiuno, aut per quinque dies
dederit, Marcellus. In ovo sorbili cimicem unum contritum ieiunus
ignorans qui sorbuerit, desinet vomere, hoc saepe expertum est, Idem.
Medici liquida resina raro utuntur, et in ovo fere e larice, propter
tussim ulceraque viscerum, Plinius[2].
Eadem ratione sunt qui etiam catapotia ex ovo sorbili deglutiant, quod
ita facile commodeque devorentur: sed hic ovum aliud nihil confert, ad
tussim vero ulceraque viscerum ipsum quoque per se nonnihil iuvat. |
Starch
with an egg is given those people who vomited blood: but in bladder's
pain one-half
ounce [13.64
g] of starch with an egg and three eggs of raisin wine (obviously that
quantity of raisin wine that three eggshells were able to contain)
almost boiled in bain-marie |
¶ Pars IIII.
Remedia ex ovis crudis integris (id est cum albumine et vitello)
absorptis, primum per se extra et intra corpus: deinde aliis admixtis.
Ovum crudum utiliter mox imponitur ambustis, sive albumen tantum imponas
lana molli exceptum, sive totum una cum vitello agitatum[3],
(ἀναδεύσας:)
refrigerat enim moderate et sine morsu siccat, Galenus. Ad ignem sacrum[4]:
Ovo crudo linies corpus ubi fervor fuerit, et desuper folium betae
impones: miraberis sanitatem, Sextus. Ad epiphoras oculorum sedandas:
Limaces complures tere in mortario novo et nitido, et adijce ibi ovum
gallinaceum incoctum, et tinge illic lanam succidam, et fronti impone,
Marcellus. Saepe boum languor et nausea discutitur, si integrum
gallinaceum crudum ovum ieiunis faucibus inferas, ac postero die spicas
Ulpici[5]
vel allii cum vino conteras, et in naribus infundas, Columella[6].
Ovum si sorbeatur crudum, prodest contra sanguinis fluxum, eiusdemque
mictum, Avicen. Alexander Trallianus ova cruda in renum inflammatione
sorberi consulit. Ovum crudum si sorbeatur, sistit fluxum muliebrem, et
reiectionem sanguinis superiorem, et arteriam attenuat, et clarificat.
Facit etiam ad inflammationem ani, et rupturas, et ad omnem dolorem
perfecte, Kiranides. |
¶
Section 4 - Remedies gotten from
raw eggs taken whole (that is, with egg white and yolk), at first alone
externally and internally: then mixed with other ingredients. The
raw egg is effectively and immediately applied on burns, either you only
apply the egg white placed on a cloth of soft wool,
or the whole beaten egg (anadeúsas) together with the
yolk: in fact it refreshes enough and dry without giving burning, Galen.
Against the holy fire – Persian fire |
Ovum crudum
sitim prohibet, et raucedinem emendat, ut in nothis Galeno attributis
legimus. Raucus si ova incocta recentia singula per triduum ieiunus
hauserit, statim remediabitur, Marcellus. Caeterum toto ovo crudo
utimur, admixto rosaceo, ad inflammationes circa palpebras, aures et
mamillas, quae ex ictu istarum partium vel aliter oboriuntur: item circa
corpora nervosa, ut cubitum, tendines digitorum, vel articulos in
manibus pedibusque, Galenus. Andromachus apud Galenum in opere de
compos. med. sec. locos, ova cruda integra duo immiscet medicamento
cuidam composito ad sedem. Ova cruda cum passo oleique pari modo
tussientibus dantur, Plin.[7]
Si quis purulentum tussit, (Ad puris et sanguinis excreationem, Plinius[8])
ovum crudum cum pari mensura succi de porro sectivo expressi,
tantundemque optimi mellis (Graeci, Plin.) permixtum, calefactum ieiunus
sorbeat, Marcellus. Ad phthisicos: Ova cruda duo in calicem verguntur,
eo adijciuntur olei optimi, gari floris, passi Cretici, singulorum
unciae quinque. cumque haec in calicem conieceris, axungiae
vetustissimae tantundem in vase igne dissolves, eundemque liquorem
calidum caeteris rebus adijcies: omniaque pariter super aquam ferventem
remittes, et calida phthisicis bibenda praebebis, Marcellus. |
The
raw egg removes the thirst and takes away the hoarseness, as I have read
in the spurious works attributed to Galen. One having hoarseness if on
empty stomach will drink for three days a fresh raw egg, immediately
will recover, Marcellus Empiricus. Moreover we use the whole raw egg,
mixing oil of roses, against the inflammations of eyelids, ears and
mammae taking origin from a trauma of these regions or from anything
else: likewise for the sensitive areas as elbow, tendons of fingers or
small articulations of hands and feet, Galen. Andromachus |
Ova in aceto
macerata ut emolliatur putamen, cum farina in pane subigunt: quibus
coeliaci recreantur. quidam ita resoluta (aceto mollita) in patinis
torreri utilius putant. quo genere non alvos tantum, sed et menses
foeminarum sistunt: aut si maior sit impetus, cruda (praemollita aceto)
cum farina ex aqua hauriuntur, Plinius[9].
Ova ex aceto decocta ardores urinae, renum ulcera ac vesicae mirifice
tollunt: et multo magis, si nuper nata et cruda excusso albamento
deglutieris, Platina. vide etiam in Vitelli remediis infra. Ova cruda
dysentericorum qui ardorem sentiunt clysteribus adduntur, cum vino
modico ac largo rosaceo conquassata, Aetius. Qui praecordiorum ardore
vexantur, si etiam febres et lumbricos habeant, hoc remedio sanabuntur:
Ovum crudum summiter apertum exinanies, idque implebis oleo viridi, et
defundes: et lotio virginis pueri implebis, et defundes: tum adijcies
parum mellis, et in unum cum ovi ipsius interioribus permiscebis, et
potandum ieiuno dabis. hoc et stercus vetustissimum et lumbricos noxios
pellit, et febrem acutissimam relevat, Marcellus. Ad secundas mulieris
morantes: Sapae cyathos duos, ovum crudum unum, et aquae calidae quod
satis est, simul mixta bibenda praebeto. Et si sequitur quidem,
confestim ipsam subvertet, eaque vomente statim {secunda eijcietur}
<secundae eijcientur>. Si vero non excideri<n>t,
{foenungraecum} <foenumgraecum> cum aqua coquito ad tertias. praebe
bibendum. est enim probatum, Nic. Myrepsus. |
They
work the eggs soaked in vinegar, so that the shell softens, with flour
in order to bake bread: those suffering from intestinal pains are
relieved by them. Some think as more profitable that they are toasted in
frying pan after having so softened them (softened in vinegar). Prepared
in this way they not only stop the diarrhoea, but also the
menstruations: or if the flow is rather intense, they are swallowed raw
(at first softened in vinegar) with flour and water, Pliny. The eggs
cooked in vinegar make to regress in a marvellous way the strangury, the
renal and vesical ulcerations, and they do this very more if you swallow
them just laid and raw after the egg white has been removed, Platina |
¶ Pars V.
Remedia ex ovis duris et ustis. Ova elixando indurata, assa et frixa,
miscentur medicamentis iis quae humores (fluxiones) exiccare possunt,
Galenus. In ovis est astrictio, et proprie in vitello eorum assato,
Avicenna. Alvum astringunt dura ova, magisque si assa sunt, Celsus[10].
Ova assata in cinere sine fumo, medentur solutioni ventris et
dysenteriae, (quod et in nothis quibusdam Galeno adscriptis legitur) cum
sumuntur cum aliquibus astringentibus et aqua agrestae: item asperitati
(ulcerationi) intestinorum ac vesicae, Avicenna. Galenus hoc scribit de
ovis in aceto coctis, ut inferius referetur. Ova tota sistunt et menses
mulierum cocta et ex vino pota, (dura intelligo,) [444] Plinius[11]
ut quidam citat. |
¶
Section 5 - Remedies gotten from
hard-boiled and roasted eggs. The hard-boiled, roasted and fried
eggs, are mixed with those medicines being able to stop the humours (the
flows of liquids), Galen. In the eggs an astringent power resides, and
specifically in their roasted yolk, Avicenna. The hard eggs act as
intestinal astringent, and still more if roasted, Celsus |
[1] Naturalis historia XXII,137: Datur cum ovo iis, qui sanguinem reiecerint, in vesicae vero dolore semuncia amyli cum ovo et passi tribus ovis subfervefacta a balineo.
[2] Naturalis historia
XXIV,33: Medici liquida raro utuntur
et in ovo fere, e larice propter tussim ulceraque viscerum — nec pinea
magnopere in usu —, ceteris non nisi coctis. Et
coquendi genera satis demonstravimus.
[3] Citazione già presente a pagina 436 e 438. In ambedue i casi dopo totum c’è ovum. – La citazione è tratta dall’XI libro del De simplicium medicamentorum temperamentis et facultatibus. Il verbo anadeúø significa bagnare, irrorare, inzuppare, impregnare.
[4] Discussa è
l’interpretazione di cosa fosse l’ignis sacer, che magari fu
anche chiamato ignis Persicus – fuoco persiano. Umberto Capitani e
Ivan Garofalo (Naturalis historia di Plinio, libro XXVIII, Einaudi,
1986) non citano il carbonchio, e puntualizzano che Celso in De medicina
V,26,31 e 28,4 fa una
distinzione fra erisipela e herpes zoster (o fuoco di Sant’Antonio), per
cui il fuoco sacro dovrebbe poter corrispondere all’herpes zoster.
Affascinanti problemi insoluti di medicina antica!
[5] Secondo Margaret R.
Mezzabotta (What Was Ulpicum? - The
Classical Quarterly, New Series, Vol. 50, No. 1 (2000), pp. 230-237)
per i botanici moderni l'ulpicum corrisponderebbe all'Allium
ampeloprasum – great-headed garlic in inglese. § Plinio
Naturalis historia XIX,111-112: Alium ad multa ruris praecipue
medicamenta prodesse creditur. Tenuissimis et quae spernantur universum
velatur membranis, mox pluribus coagmentatur nucleis, et his separatim
vestitis, asperi saporis; quo plures nuclei fuere, hoc est asperius. Taedium
huic quoque halitu, ut cepis, nullum tamen coctis. [112] Generum differentia
in tempore — praecox maturescit LX diebus —, tum in magnitudine. Ulpicum
quoque in hoc genere Graeci appellavere alium Cyprium, alii antiskorodon,
praecipue Africae celebratum inter pulmentaria ruris, grandius alio. Tritum
in oleo et aceto mirum quantum increscit spuma. Quidam ulpicum et alium in
plano seri vetant, castellatimque grumulis inponi distantibus inter se pedes
ternos. Inter grana digiti IIII interesse debent, simul atque tria folia
eruperunt, sariri. Grandescunt, quo saepius sariuntur. § Garlic is generally supposed, in the country more particularly, to be a
good specific2
for numerous maladies. The external coat consists of membranes of remarkable
fineness, which are universally discarded when the vegetable is used; the
inner part being formed by the union of several cloves, each of which has
also a separate coat of its own. The flavour of it is pungent, and the more
numerous the cloves the more pungent it is. Like the onion, it imparts an
offensive smell to the breath; but this is not the case when it is cooked.
The various species of garlic are distinguished by the periods at which they
ripen: the early kind becomes fit for use in sixty days. Another
distinction, too, is formed by the relative size of the heads. Ulpicum3 , also, generally known to the Greeks as "Cyprian garlic,"
belongs to this class; by some persons it is called
"antiscorodon," and in Africa more particularly it holds a high
rank among the dishes of the rural population; it is of a larger size than
ordinary garlic. When beaten up with oil and vinegar, it is quite surprising
what a quantity of creaming foam is produced. There are some persons who
recommend that neither ulpicum nor garlic should be sown on level ground,
but say that they should be planted in little mounds trenched up, at a
distance of three feet apart. Between each clove, they say, there should be
a distance of four fingers left, and as soon as ever three leaves are
visible, the heads should be hoed; the oftener they are hoed, the larger the
size they will attain. (http://cts.perseus.tufts.edu - Editions and
translations: English ed. John Bostock, M.D., F.R.S., H.T. Riley, Esq.,
B.A.)
[6] De re rustica VI,4,2: Saepe etiam languor et nausea discutitur, si integrum gallinaceum crudum ovum ieiunis faucibus inseras, ac postero die spicas ulpici vel alii cum vino conteras, et in naribus infundas; neque haec tantum remedia salubritatem faciunt.
[7] Naturalis historia XXIX,47: Dantur et tussientibus cocta et trita cum melle et cruda cum passo oleique pari modo
[8] Naturalis historia XXIX,47: Ad puris et sanguinis excreationes ovum crudum cum porri sectivi suco parique mensura mellis Graeci calefactum hauritur.
[9] Naturalis historia XXIX,49: Maceratorum in aceto molliri diximus putamen; talibus cum farina in panem subactis coeliaci recreantur. Quidam ita resoluta in patinis torrere utilius putant, quo genere non alvos tantum, sed et menses feminarum sistunt, aut, si maior sit impetus, cruda cum farina et aqua hauriuntur. Et per se lutea ex iis decocuntur in aceto, donec indurescant, iterumque cum trito pipere torrentur ad cohibendas alvos.
[10] De medicina II,30,2: Contra astringunt panis ex siligine vel ex simila, magis si sine fermento est, magis etiam si ustus est, [...] [2] dura ova, magisque si assa sunt; [...].
[11] Si traduce ova tota con uova intere, ma secondo Plinio sarebbe scorretto. Infatti egli sta parlando di lutea, di tuorli, ma quel totis ovis pridie maceratis diventa fuorviante in una citazione enucleata dal resto, inducendo ad assumere intere le uova per arrestare le mestruazioni anziché solo i tuorli: Naturalis historia XXIX,44: Et, cum opus sit, abellanae nucis magnitudine ex aqua pota, item ex oleo fricta terna, totis ovis pridie maceratis in aceto; sic et lientericis, sanguinem autem reicientibus cum III cyathis musti. Utuntur isdem ad liventia, si vetustiora sint, cum bulbis ac melle. Sistunt et menses mulierum cocta et e vino pota, inflationes quoque vulvae cruda cum oleo ac vino inlita.