Caius Calpurnius Asclepiades of Prusa (aka "Phylophysicus", one of several men referred to as Asclepiades of Prusa) was an eminent physician who flourished in the second century during the reign of

Hadrian Hadrian (; la, Caesar Trâiānus Hadriānus ; 24 January 76 – 10 July 138) was Roman emperor from 117 to 138. He was born in Italica (close to modern Santiponce in Spain), a Roman ''municipium'' founded by Italic settlers in Hispania B ...

. Born in

Prusia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

Bithynia Bithynia (; Koine Greek: , ''Bithynía'') was an ancient region, kingdom and Roman province in the northwest of Asia Minor (present-day Turkey), adjoining the Sea of Marmara, the Bosporus, and the Black Sea. It bordered Mysia to the southwest, Pa ...

in 88 CE, he wrote several books on the composition of

medicines A medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy (pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the medical field and rel ...

, both internal and external. The Greek physician

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 ...

recorded some of Asclepiades' medical formulas in his works. He was presented by 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 ...

with the revenues of seven cities for himself and his family and served as one of the assessors of

Roman magistrate The Roman magistrates were elected officials in Ancient Rome. During the period of the Roman Kingdom, the King of Rome was the principal executive magistrate.Abbott, 8 His power, in practice, was absolute. He was the chief priest, lawgiver, judg ...

s in charge of voting tablets. The biographer

Antonio Cocchi Antonio Cocchi (3 August 1695 – 1 January 1758) was an Italian physician, naturalist and writer. He was best known for his work on anatomy. Biography Cocchi was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1736, his candidature citation describi ...

noted that there were over forty men of history with the name ''Asclepiades'' and wrote that this Asclepiades of Prusa was a fellow countryman of, and perhaps a lineal descendant of the Asclepiades who died in 40 BCE. He was married to Veronia Chelidonia for 51 years and died aged 70.Strauss, Paul, ''La Revue Philanthropique'' (Paris, Masson et Cie, 1897), p. 846-7

See also

References

Further reading