
Bartholomäus Metlinger (born in
Augsburg
Augsburg ( , ; ; ) is a city in the Bavaria, Bavarian part of Swabia, Germany, around west of the Bavarian capital Munich. It is a College town, university town and the regional seat of the Swabia (administrative region), Swabia with a well ...
– died c. 1491) was a German physician of the
Late Middle Ages
The late Middle Ages or late medieval period was the Periodization, period of History of Europe, European history lasting from 1300 to 1500 AD. The late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period ( ...
.
Metlinger graduated in 1470 from the
University of Bologna
The University of Bologna (, abbreviated Unibo) is a Public university, public research university in Bologna, Italy. Teaching began around 1088, with the university becoming organised as guilds of students () by the late 12th century. It is the ...
. He was
city physician
City physician (German language, German: ; , , from Latin ) was a historical title in the Late Middle Ages for a physician appointed by the city council. The city physician was responsible for the health of the population, particularly the poor, ...
() in
Nördlingen from 1476 to 1483, when he took the same position in
Augsburg
Augsburg ( , ; ; ) is a city in the Bavaria, Bavarian part of Swabia, Germany, around west of the Bavarian capital Munich. It is a College town, university town and the regional seat of the Swabia (administrative region), Swabia with a well ...
, probably succeeding his late father Peter Metlinger.
His most famous work, ('Little Book on Children'), was published on 7 December 1473, being retitled in later editions as ('A Guide on Young Children').
It was the first German-language work on
pediatrics
Pediatrics (American English) also spelled paediatrics (British English), is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, Adolescence, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, pediatrics covers many o ...
. In it, Metlinger deals with the care of infants and small children up to the age of seven. The book describes several childhood diseases and their treatments, besides providing educational advice. It also contains one of the first known written definitions of a
pacifier.
See also
*
Eucharius Rösslin
*
Felix Würtz
*
Swaddling
Bibliography
* Walter Martin Manzke: ''Remedia per infantibus: Medicinal child therapy in the 15th and 16th centuries, illustrated by means of selected diseases'' (dissertation in the Department of Pharmacy at the University of Marburg.). 2008. http://d-nb.info/987944800/34
* John Ruräh: ''Bartholomaeus Metlinger -1491''. in American Journal of Diseases of Children, 35 (3), 1928, pp 492–494.
* Susanne Scheibenreiter: Diseases of the child in the Middle Ages (Unpublished thesis, University of Vienna, Faculty of History). 2008, 93 pages. http://othes.univie.ac.at/1341/1/2008-10-03_5600012.pdf
External links
Bartholomäus Metlinger on digitale-sammlungen.de
References
German pediatricians
15th-century German physicians
15th-century educators
Education writers
German-language writers
Physicians from Augsburg
German medical writers
German male non-fiction writers
15th-century German writers
1490s deaths
Year of birth missing
Year of death uncertain
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