Cassius Felix (), also Cassius Felix of Cirta, was a
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
African
African or Africans may refer to:
* Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa:
** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa
*** Ethn ...
medical writer probably native of
Constantina
Flavia Valeria Constantina (also sometimes called ''Constantia'' and ''Constantiana''; el, Κωνσταντίνα; b. after 307/before 317 – d. 354), later known as Saint Constance, was the eldest daughter of Roman emperor Constantine the Great ...
. He is known for having written in AD 447 a
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
treatise titled ''De Medicina''.
The little we can say of the author comes from his book, that is meant to be a simple handbook for practical use in which he wants others to be able to take advantage of his experience as a physician. His work appears to draw heavily, both directly and indirectly, on Greek medical sources, as was common in the African school of medicine.
A
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
by faith, he may be the person mentioned in passing in the anonymous ''
De miraculis Sancti Stephani'', a work written between 418 and 427, where a certain Felix is referred as holding the high medical dignity of
archiater An archiater ( grc, ἀρχίατρος) was a chief physician of a monarch, who typically retained several. At the Roman imperial court, their chief held the high rank and specific title of ''Comes archiatrorum''.
The term has also been used of ch ...
, or chief doctor of his community.
The ''
editio princeps In classical scholarship, the ''editio princeps'' (plural: ''editiones principes'') of a work is the first printed edition of the work, that previously had existed only in manuscripts, which could be circulated only after being copied by hand.
For ...
'' of his work was first published in 1879 in a
Teubner
The Bibliotheca Teubneriana, or ''Bibliotheca Scriptorum Graecorum et Romanorum Teubneriana'', also known as Teubner editions of Greek and Latin texts, comprise one of the most thorough modern collection published of ancient (and some medieval) ...
edition edited by
Valentin Rose.
The name Cassius Felix is sometimes also applied to Cassius Iatrosophista, an earlier Greek medical writer (2nd or 3rd century AD) known only as the author of 84 or 85 ''Quaestiones Medicae et Problemata Naturalia'' ( grc, Ἰατρικαὶ Ἀπορίαι καὶ Προβλήματα Φυσικά).
[A. Garzya and R. Masullo, ''I problemi di Cassio Iatrosophista'', Naples: Accademia Pontaniana, 2004]
References
External links
Cassius Felix, ed. Rose 1879Cassius Iatrosophista, ed. Ideler 1841{{Authority control
5th-century Roman physicians
5th-century Latin writers
Felix
Felix may refer to:
* Felix (name), people and fictional characters with the name
Places
* Arabia Felix is the ancient Latin name of Yemen
* Felix, Spain, a municipality of the province Almería, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, ...