Criton of Heraclea ( el, Κρίτων, la, Titus Statilius Crito) was a 2nd-century (c. 100 AD) Greek chief physician and procurator of Roman Emperor

Trajan Trajan ( ; la, Caesar Nerva Traianus; 18 September 539/11 August 117) was Roman emperor from 98 to 117. Officially declared ''optimus princeps'' ("best ruler") by the senate, Trajan is remembered as a successful soldier-emperor who presi ...

(98–117) in the campaign in

Dacia Dacia (, ; ) was the land inhabited by the Dacians, its core in Transylvania, stretching to the Danube in the south, the Black Sea in the east, and the Tisza in the west. The Carpathian Mountains were located in the middle of Dacia. It thus r ...

. He is perhaps the Criton mentioned in

Martial Marcus Valerius Martialis (known in English as Martial ; March, between 38 and 41 AD – between 102 and 104 AD) was a Roman poet from Hispania (modern Spain) best known for his twelve books of ''Epigrams'', published in Rome between AD 86 and ...

's ''Epigrams''. He wrote a work on ''Cosmetics'' in four books, which were very popular in

Galen Aelius Galenus or Claudius Galenus ( el, Κλαύδιος Γαληνός; September 129 – c. AD 216), often Anglicized as Galen () or Galen of Pergamon, was a Greek physician, surgeon and philosopher in the Roman Empire. Considered to be one of ...

's time and which contained almost all that had been written on the same subject by

Heraclides of Tarentum Heraclides of Tarentum ( grc-gre, Ἡρακλείδης ὁ Ταραντῖνος; fl. 3rd – 2nd century BC), was a Pyrrhonist philosopher and Greek physician of the Empiric school who wrote commentaries on the works of Hippocrates. Diogenes L ...

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Philopator ( grc-gre, Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ}, "Cleopatra the father-beloved"; 69 BC10 August 30 BC) was Queen of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt from 51 to 30 BC, and its last active ruler.She was also a ...

, and others. The contents of each chapter of the four books have been preserved by Galen, who frequently quotes from it. Criton wrote also a work on ''Simple Medicines'' of which the fourth book is quoted by Galen; he is also quoted by Aëtius and Paul of Aegina, and may perhaps be the person to whom one of the letters of

Apollonius of Tyana Apollonius of Tyana ( grc, Ἀπολλώνιος ὁ Τυανεύς; c. 3 BC – c. 97 AD) was a Greek Neopythagorean philosopher from the town of Tyana in the Roman province of Cappadocia in Anatolia. He is the subject of ''L ...

is addressed. Criton also has a historical work, ''Getica'', now lost about the history of

Daco The Dacians (; la, Daci ; grc-gre, Δάκοι, Δάοι, Δάκαι) were the ancient Indo-European inhabitants of the cultural region of Dacia, located in the area near the Carpathian Mountains and west of the Black Sea. They are often consi ...

Getae The Getae ( ) or Gets ( ; grc, Γέται, singular ) were a Thracian-related tribe that once inhabited the regions to either side of the Lower Danube, in what is today northern Bulgaria and southern Romania. Both the singular form ''Get'' an ...

. ''Getica'' was at the basis of Trajan's own work, ''

Dacica ''Dacica'' (or ''De bello dacico'') is a Latin work by Roman Emperor Trajan, written in the spirit of Julius Caesar's commentaries like ''De Bello Gallico'', and describing Trajan's campaigns in Dacia. It is assumed to be based on Criton of He ...

'' (or ''De bello dacico''), about his Dacian Wars, which is also lost. He is perhaps the author of a work on ''Cookery'', mentioned by

Athenaeus Athenaeus of Naucratis (; grc, Ἀθήναιος ὁ Nαυκρατίτης or Nαυκράτιος, ''Athēnaios Naukratitēs'' or ''Naukratios''; la, Athenaeus Naucratita) was a Greek rhetorician and grammarian, flourishing about the end of th ...

.Athenaeus, xii. p. 516 None of his works seem to be extant, except a few fragments preserved by other authors. As Trajan's medic, Criton created a mixture consumed daily by the emperor.

Titles of works

* ''Cosmetics'', a medical treatise * ''Simple Medicines'' * ''Getica'', a work on the history of the

Notes

References

* *
On melancholy
by Rufus of Ephesus, Peter E. Pormann * {{DEFAULTSORT:Criton Of Heraclea Roman-era Greek historians Writers of lost works 2nd-century historians 2nd-century Roman physicians 2nd-century Greek physicians Historiography of Dacia Statilii