Anthimus ( el, ; fl. 511–534) was a

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

physician at the court of the

Ostrogoth The Ostrogoths ( la, Ostrogothi, Austrogothi) were a Roman-era Germanic people. In the 5th century, they followed the Visigoths in creating one of the two great Gothic kingdoms within the Roman Empire, based upon the large Gothic populations who ...

king

Theodoric the Great Theodoric (or Theoderic) the Great (454 – 30 August 526), also called Theodoric the Amal ( got, , *Þiudareiks; Greek: , romanized: ; Latin: ), was king of the Ostrogoths (471–526), and ruler of the independent Ostrogothic Kingdom of Italy ...

and that of the

Frankish king The Franks, Germanic-speaking peoples that invaded the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century, were first led by individuals called dukes and reguli. The earliest group of Franks that rose to prominence was the Salian Merovingians, who c ...

Theuderic I __NOTOC__ Theuderic I (c. 485 – 533/34) was the Merovingian king of Metz, Rheims, or Austrasia—as it is variously called—from 511 to 533 or 534. He was the son of Clovis I and one of his earlier wives or concubines (possibly a Franc ...

, noted for his authorship of ''De observatione ciborum'' ("On the Observance of Foods"), a valuable source for

Late Latin Late Latin ( la, Latinitas serior) is the scholarly name for the form of Literary Latin of late antiquity.Roberts (1996), p. 537. English dictionary definitions of Late Latin date this period from the , and continuing into the 7th century in t ...

linguistics as well as Byzantine

dietetics A dietitian, medical dietitian, or dietician is an expert in identifying and treating disease-related malnutrition and in conducting medical nutrition therapy, for example designing an enteral tube feeding regimen or mitigating the effects of ...

. Though not a true recipe book, the text includes detailed instructions for making at least one Byzantine specialty (), using whipped egg whites, and a beef stew using honey, vinegar and spices. Preparations are described in more cursory terms for a number of other foods. Most of the preparations reflect Roman methods (using ingredients such as oxymel and oenomel), but the Frankish love of raw bacon is also cited. The author also specifically references whether specific foods were then available in Theodoric's region (near

Metz Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand ...

in Northeastern France). Among other ingredients, the mention of several spices makes it clear that these were available in France long after the fall of Rome and centuries before the Crusades. As a dietetic, the text also addresses the use of foods for selected ailments such as

dysentery Dysentery (UK pronunciation: , US: ), historically known as the bloody flux, is a type of gastroenteritis that results in bloody diarrhea. Other symptoms may include fever, abdominal pain, and a feeling of incomplete defecation. Complications ...

diarrhea Diarrhea, also spelled diarrhoea, is the condition of having at least three loose, liquid, or watery bowel movements each day. It often lasts for a few days and can result in dehydration due to fluid loss. Signs of dehydration often begin w ...

dropsy Edema, also spelled oedema, and also known as fluid retention, dropsy, hydropsy and swelling, is the build-up of fluid in the body's tissue. Most commonly, the legs or arms are affected. Symptoms may include skin which feels tight, the area ma ...

, and

fever Fever, also referred to as pyrexia, is defined as having a temperature above the normal range due to an increase in the body's temperature set point. There is not a single agreed-upon upper limit for normal temperature with sources using val ...

. In general, Anthimus' approach is based on

humoral theory Humorism, the humoral theory, or humoralism, was a system of medicine detailing a supposed makeup and workings of the human body, adopted by Ancient Greek and Roman physicians and philosophers. Humorism began to fall out of favor in the 1850s ...

(referring for instance to " melancholic humours") though he only cites unnamed "authors" or "authorities" as his sources.

Editions

* ''Anecdota graeca et graecolatina. Mitteilungen aus Handschriften zur Geschichte der griechischen Wissenschaft'', ed. by Valentin Rose, vol. 2, Ferdinand Duemmler's Verlagsbuchhandlung, Berlin 1870, p
41 ff.
* Anthimi ''De observatione ciborum. Epistula ad Theudericum regem Francorum'', ed. by Valentin Rose, B. G. Teubner, Leipzig 1877
online
.

English translations

* Anthimus: ''On the Observance of Foods'', translated by Mark Grant, Prospect Books, London 1996 (); 2007 (

. * Anthimus: ''How To Cook an Early French Peacock: De Observatione Ciborum – Roman Food for a Frankish King'', translated by Jim Chevallier, Chez Jim Books, 2012

.

References

* Eva Baumkamp: ''Prima sanitas ex cibis bene coctis et bene digestis constat: Die Gesundheit beruht zuerst auf gut gekochten und gut verdauten Speisen! Bemerkungen zur Nahrungsmittelkunde des Anthimus''. In: Timo Klär, Eike Faber (eds.): ''Zwischen Hunger und Überfluss: Antike Diskurse über Ernährung''. Stuttgart 2020, pp. 303–325. * Gordon M. Messing, "Remarks on Anthimus ''De observatione ciborum''", ''Classical Philology'' 37:2:150–158 (April 1942
at JSTOR
6th-century Byzantine physicians Food writers Medical writers 6th-century Latin writers People of the Ostrogothic Kingdom {{Byzantine-bio-stub