Georg Bartisch (1535–1607) was a German physician who was a native of

Königsbrück Königsbrück ( Upper Sorbian: ''Kinspork'') is a town in the Bautzen district, in Saxony, Germany. It is situated west of Kamenz, and northeast of the Saxon capital Dresden. Königsbrück is known as the western gate of the historic Upper Lusati ...

, Saxonia. At the age of thirteen he began his medical career as an apprentice to a

barber surgeon The barber surgeon, one of the most common European medical practitioners of the Middle Ages, was generally charged with caring for soldiers during and after battle. In this era, surgery was seldom conducted by physicians, but instead by barbe ...

, and for a considerable portion of his life Bartisch was an itinerant

surgeon In modern medicine, a surgeon is a medical professional who performs surgery. Although there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon usually is also a licensed physician or received the same medical training as ...

who plied his trade throughout

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a ...

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. S ...

, and

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

. He eventually settled down in

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label= Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth ...

, and in 1588 became court

oculist Ophthalmology ( ) is a surgical subspecialty within medicine that deals with the diagnosis and treatment of eye disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Following a medic ...

to Duke Augustus I of Saxony. Although Bartisch was not academically trained, he was considered a highly skilled practitioner of ocular medicine and surgery. He is credited for producing the first

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 ide ...

manuscript on ophthalmic disorders and

eye surgery Eye surgery, also known as ophthalmic or ocular surgery, is surgery performed on the eye or its adnexa, by an ophthalmologist or sometimes, an optometrist. Eye surgery is synonymous with ophthalmology. The eye is a very fragile organ, and requ ...

, "''Ophthalmodouleia Das ist Augendienst''". It was published in 1583, and discussed ocular diseases, surgical techniques and instruments, and contained an ophthalmic atlas of 92

woodcut Woodcut is a relief printing technique in printmaking. An artist carves an image into the surface of a block of wood—typically with gouges—leaving the printing parts level with the surface while removing the non-printing parts. Areas tha ...

s depicting diseases of the eye. Bartisch is also remembered for his work in

lithotomy Lithotomy from Greek for "lithos" (stone) and "tomos" ( cut), is a surgical method for removal of calculi, stones formed inside certain organs, such as the urinary tract (kidney stones), bladder ( bladder stones), and gallbladder (gallstones), ...

for the removal of urinary calculi. Despite his skill as a surgeon, Bartisch was a

superstitious A superstition is any belief or practice considered by non-practitioners to be irrational or supernatural, attributed to fate or magic, perceived supernatural influence, or fear of that which is unknown. It is commonly applied to beliefs and ...

individual, as he believed that magic,

astrology Astrology is a range of divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of celestial objects. Di ...

and

witchcraft Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have ...

played a significant part in medicine.

References

Duke University
The History of Medicine Collections; Bartisch Exhibit

Ophthalmodouleia

External links

Online Galleries, History of Science Collections, University of Oklahoma Libraries
High resolution images of works by and/or portraits of Georg Bartisch in .jpg and .tiff format. 1535 births 1607 deaths German ophthalmologists 16th-century German physicians 16th-century German writers 16th-century German male writers Physicians from Saxony {{Germany-med-bio-stub