Epifanio Ferdinando (1569–1638) was an Italian

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

of the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

. He is known to medical historians for his detailed discussion of

tarantism Tarantism is a form of hysteric behaviour originating in Southern Italy, popularly believed to result from the bite of the wolf spider ''Lycosa tarantula'' (distinct from the broad class of spiders also called tarantulas). A better candidate ca ...

Biography

Epifanio Ferdinando was born in

Mesagne Mesagne ( Mesagnese: ) is a ''comune'' in the province of Brindisi and region of Apulia, on the south-east Italy coast. Its main economic activities are tourism and the growing of olives and grapes. It is the fifth most-populous town of the provin ...

, in the Terra di Otranto, on 2 November 1569. He cultivated the study of the

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 ...

and Greek poets at an early age, and wrote elegant verses in both these languages. In 1583 he went to

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

with the intention of going through the courses of

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

and

medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pract ...

; but in 1591, all strangers were compelled to leave the place. Ferdinando, returning to his own country, taught

geometry Geometry (; ) is, with arithmetic, one of the oldest branches of mathematics. It is concerned with properties of space such as the distance, shape, size, and relative position of figures. A mathematician who works in the field of geometry is c ...

and

until 1594, when the

viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...

's edict being revoked, he returned to Naples, pursued a course of medical studies, and received the degree of doctor in medicine and philosophy. He then returned to his native home, where he settled himself and remained to the end of his life, notwithstanding the tempting offers he received from several universities. The

Duke of Parma The Duke of Parma and Piacenza () was the ruler of the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza, a historical state of Northern Italy, which existed between 1545 and 1802, and again from 1814 to 1859. The Duke of Parma was also Duke of Piacenza, except ...

Ranuccio Farnese, in particular, pressed him to take the professorship of medicine in the university of his city; and the same invitation, was given from the

University of Padua The University of Padua ( it, Università degli Studi di Padova, UNIPD) is an Italian university located in the city of Padua, region of Veneto, northern Italy. The University of Padua was founded in 1222 by a group of students and teachers from B ...

. In 1605, he was elected

syndic Syndic (Late Latin: '; Greek: ' – one who helps in a court of justice, an advocate, representative) is a term applied in certain countries to an officer of government with varying powers, and secondly to a representative or delegate of a universi ...

-general of his country. He died in Mesagne on 6 December 1638, aged 69.

Works

Epifanio Ferdinando composed a considerable number of treatises, but only the four following are known, as having been printed: * "Theoremata Medica et Philosophica," Venice, 1611. * "De vita proroganda, seu juventute conservanda et senectute retardanda," Naples, 1612. * "Centum Historiae, seu Observationes et Casus Medici," Venice, 1621, a treatise concerning an extensive variety of diseases affecting multiple organs and systems of the human body. Particular emphasis is given to the pathology of psychiatric interest to which six clinical histories are dedicated. It was reprinted several times in Germany and Holland. * "Aureus de Peste Libellus," Naples, 1631.

Notes

Bibliography

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ferdinando, Epifanio 1569 births 1638 deaths 16th-century Neapolitan people 17th-century Neapolitan people 17th-century Italian physicians People from Mesagne University of Naples Federico II alumni