The Aesculapian Club of

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

is one of the oldest medical

dining clubs A dining club (UK) or eating club (US) is a social group, usually requiring membership (which may, or may not be available only to certain people), which meets for dinners and discussion on a regular basis. They may also often have guest speakers. ...

in the world. It was founded in April 1773 by Dr. Andrew Duncan. Membership of the Club is limited to 11 Fellows of the

Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh The Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE) is a medical royal college in Scotland. It is one of three organisations that sets the specialty training standards for physicians in the United Kingdom. It was established by Royal charter ...

and 11 Fellows of the

Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd) is a professional organisation of surgeons. The College has seven active faculties, covering a broad spectrum of surgical, dental, and other medical practices. Its main campus is located on ...

. 'Extraordinary Membership' is given to members aged over 70 years. The Club was established during the

Scottish Enlightenment The Scottish Enlightenment ( sco, Scots Enlichtenment, gd, Soillseachadh na h-Alba) was the period in 18th- and early-19th-century Scotland characterised by an outpouring of intellectual and scientific accomplishments. By the eighteenth century ...

to encourage convivial relations between Fellows of the two Colleges and to stimulate intellectual discussion. The Club dinners are held in the New Library of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh on the 2nd Friday of March and October each year. The principal guest at each dinner is invited to give a short talk on a non-medical subject and this is followed by a round-table discussion.

Founding members

There were 10 founding members of the Club who attended the first dinner on 2nd April 1773. The minutes of that meeting record that 'The Aesculapian Club was conceived in a happy moment, and in due time brought forth. Drs Duncan and Hamilton, Messrs Hay, Bell, McLure, and Dewar assisted at the birth on the first Friday of April 1773. They also stood as godfathers at the christening. The usual rites and ceremonies usual on these occasions, such as eating a good supper, etc., were concluded with a bumper recommendatory of the Club to the peculiar care of Apollo, of Bacchus, and of Venus, Floreat Res Medica. Vivat Veritas.' The Club was named after

Asclepius Asclepius (; grc-gre, Ἀσκληπιός ''Asklēpiós'' ; la, Aesculapius) is a hero and god of medicine in ancient Religion in ancient Greece, Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology. He is the son of Apollo and Coronis (lover of ...

, the Greek God of medicine, more usually known by the Roman name, Aesculapius. Aesculapius was the son of

Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...

, who was himself both the God of physic and the sender of disease. The badge of the Club consists of the Latin motto 'Floreat Res Medica' (Let the medical field flourish) and a cockerel. Cockerels adorn many of the fixtures and fittings of the

. In Greek mythology cockerels were dedicated to Apollo (because their crowing gave notice of the rising sun) and to Aesculapius (because their example of 'early to bed and early to rise' was associated with good health).

Former members and previous meetings

There have been 309 past and present members of the Aesculapian Club. Notable former Aesculpians include

James Lind James Lind (4 October 1716 – 13 July 1794) was a Scottish doctor. He was a pioneer of naval hygiene in the Royal Navy. By conducting one of the first ever clinical trials, he developed the theory that citrus fruits cured scurvy. Lind arg ...

Daniel Rutherford Daniel Rutherford (3 November 1749 – 15 December 1819) was a Scottish physician, chemist and botanist who is known for the isolation of nitrogen in 1772. Life Rutherford was born on 3 November 1749, the son of Anne Mackay and Professor John ...

, Thomas Hope,

James Syme James Syme (7 November 1799 – 26 June 1870) was a pioneering Scottish surgeon. Early life James Syme was born on 7 November 1799 at 56 Princes Street in Edinburgh. His father was John Syme WS of Cartmore and Lochore, estates in Fife ...

, Sir James Young Simpson, Lord Joseph Lister,

Joseph Bell Joseph Bell FRCSE (2 December 1837 – 4 October 1911) was a Scottish surgeon and lecturer at the medical school of the University of Edinburgh in the 19th century. He is best known as an inspiration for the literary character Sherlock Holm ...

Douglas Argyll Robertson Douglas Moray Cooper Lamb Argyll Robertson FRSE, FRCSEd LLD (1837 – 3 January 1909) was a Scottish ophthalmologist and surgeon. He introduced physostigmine into ophthalmic practice and the Argyll Robertson pupil is named after him. He was p ...

, Sir Thomas Clouston, Daniel Cunningham,

James Haig Ferguson James Haig Ferguson Legum Doctor, LLD FRSE Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, FRCPE Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, FRCSEd (18 December 1862 – 2 May 1934) was a prominent Scottish Obstetrics, obstetrician and Gynaecology, gy ...

, Sir James Learmonth and Sir Stanley Davidson. A photograph or picture of Aesculapians from 1821 to the present day is preserved in a 2-volume album. The first volume, which extends to 1939, is kept with other historic papers of the Club (including the minutes of previous meetings) in the library of the

. The Club owns a considerable number of silver cups or ''pocula'' and other table adornments. These include six silver cups with circular rows of hooks, on each of which is hung a medallion with the engraved name, date of election and crest of a former Aesculapian. Three of these cups were presented by the

Gymnastic Club Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, shou ...

(also founded by Dr Andrew Duncan) on its dissolution in 1836. One of the cups, which contains 9 medallions from 1788-1792, is on display in the

National Museums of Scotland National Museums Scotland (NMS; gd, Taighean-tasgaidh Nàiseanta na h-Alba) is an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government. It runs the national museums of Scotland. NMS is one of the country's National Collections, ...

. The Aesculapian Club was originally a supper club and met on the first Friday of every month in local taverns. In 1810, it was converted into a dinner club, with quarterly meetings in March, June, September and December in Edinburgh hotels. In 1924, the

granted permission for the dinners to be held in the New Library. Although the frequency of dinners has been reduced over the years, the Club has met almost continually since its inception. The only times when the Club did not meet were between March 1915 to December 1919 (due to the First World War), October 1939 to December 1945 (due to the Second World War) and March 2020 to October 2021 (due to the COVID pandemic).

Current members and extraordinary members

Honorary Secretary

The Secretary of the Aesculapian Club acts also as the Treasurer and is responsible for the management of all affairs of the Club. The Secretary is appointed '' ad vitam aut culpam''. There have been 16 secretaries of the Club: Dr Andrew Duncan (1773-1827); Dr Richard Huie (1827-1842); Dr Robert Omond (1842-1877); Dr Daniel Rutherford Haldane (1877-1887); Dr John Smith Jnr (1887-1905); Dr Charles Edward Underhill (1905-1908); Sir George Andreas Berry (1908-1924); Dr William Fordyce (1924-1933); Dr William James Stuart (1933-1949); Lt-Col Alexander Dron Stewart (1949-55); Professor Robert William Johnstone (1955-1958); Dr Clifford Kennedy (1958-1978); Mr Iain MacLaren 1978-2004; Dr Anthony 'Tony' Douglas Toft (2004-2014); Dr Kelvin 'Kel' Palmer (2014-2022); Professor Mark William John Strachan (2022-present). A badge for the Secretary was designed by Sir Andrew Douglas Maclagan in 1857. The badge consists of a silver medal bearing the name of the Club with a series of silver bars on the ribbon, each inscribed with the name of a Secretary and their years of office.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aesculapian Club of Edinburgh Organizations established in 1773 Organisations based in Edinburgh Clubs and societies in Edinburgh