Serenus Sammonicus
Encyclopedia
Quintus Sammonicus Serenus (died 212) was a Roman savant
, tutor to Geta
and Caracalla
who became fatally involved in politics, and an author of a didactic medical poem, Liber Medicinalis (also known as De medicina praecepta saluberrima), probably incomplete in the form in which we have it, as well as many lost works. He was "a typical man of letters in an Age of Archaism and a worthy successor to Fronto and Aulus Gellius
, one whose social rank and position is intimately bound up with the prevailing passion for grammar and a mastery of ancient lore". According to Macrobius, who plundered his work for his Saturnalia, he was "the learned man of his age". Servius and Arnobius
both employed his erudition to their own ends.He possessed a library of 60,000 volumes.
His most quoted work was Res reconditae, in at least five books, of which fragments only are preserved in quotations. The surviving work, De medicina praecepta, in 1115 hexameter
s, contains a number of popular remedies, borrowed from Pliny
and Dioscorides, and various magic formulae, amongst others the famous Abracadabra
, as a cure for fever
and ague
. It concludes with a description of the famous antidote of Mithradates VI of Pontus.
It was much used in the Middle Ages, and is of value for the ancient history of popular medicine. The syntax and metre are remarkably correct. According to the unreliable Historia Augustahe famous physician
and polymath
, who was put to death with other friends of Geta
in December 212, at a banquet to which he had been invited by Caracalla
shortly after the assassination of his brother.
The first printed edition of De medicina praecepta was edited by Johannes Sulpitius Verulanus, before 1484.
Savant syndrome
Savant syndrome , sometimes referred to as savantism, is a rare condition in which people with developmental disorders have one or more areas of expertise, ability, or brilliance that are in contrast with the individual's overall limitations...
, tutor to Geta
Publius Septimius Geta
Geta , was a Roman Emperor co-ruling with his father Septimius Severus and his older brother Caracalla from 209 to his death.-Early life:Geta was the younger son of Septimius Severus by his second wife Julia Domna...
and Caracalla
Caracalla
Caracalla , was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. The eldest son of Septimius Severus, he ruled jointly with his younger brother Geta until he murdered the latter in 211...
who became fatally involved in politics, and an author of a didactic medical poem, Liber Medicinalis (also known as De medicina praecepta saluberrima), probably incomplete in the form in which we have it, as well as many lost works. He was "a typical man of letters in an Age of Archaism and a worthy successor to Fronto and Aulus Gellius
Aulus Gellius
Aulus Gellius , was a Latin author and grammarian, who was probably born and certainly brought up in Rome. He was educated in Athens, after which he returned to Rome, where he held a judicial office...
, one whose social rank and position is intimately bound up with the prevailing passion for grammar and a mastery of ancient lore". According to Macrobius, who plundered his work for his Saturnalia, he was "the learned man of his age". Servius and Arnobius
Arnobius
Arnobius of Sicca was an Early Christian apologist, during the reign of Diocletian . According to Jerome's Chronicle, Arnobius, before his conversion, was a distinguished Numidian rhetorician at Sicca Veneria , a major Christian center in Proconsular Africa, and owed his conversion to a...
both employed his erudition to their own ends.He possessed a library of 60,000 volumes.
His most quoted work was Res reconditae, in at least five books, of which fragments only are preserved in quotations. The surviving work, De medicina praecepta, in 1115 hexameter
Hexameter
Hexameter is a metrical line of verse consisting of six feet. It was the standard epic metre in classical Greek and Latin literature, such as in the Iliad and Aeneid. Its use in other genres of composition include Horace's satires, and Ovid's Metamorphoses. According to Greek mythology, hexameter...
s, contains a number of popular remedies, borrowed from Pliny
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus , better known as Pliny the Elder, was a Roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian...
and Dioscorides, and various magic formulae, amongst others the famous Abracadabra
Abracadabra
Abracadabra is an incantation used as a magic word in stage magic tricks, and historically was believed to have healing powers when inscribed on an amulet...
, as a cure for fever
Fever
Fever is a common medical sign characterized by an elevation of temperature above the normal range of due to an increase in the body temperature regulatory set-point. This increase in set-point triggers increased muscle tone and shivering.As a person's temperature increases, there is, in...
and ague
Ague
Ague may refer to:* Fever* MalariaSee also:* Kan Ague, a residential area of Patikul, Sulu, Philippines...
. It concludes with a description of the famous antidote of Mithradates VI of Pontus.
It was much used in the Middle Ages, and is of value for the ancient history of popular medicine. The syntax and metre are remarkably correct. According to the unreliable Historia Augustahe famous physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
and polymath
Polymath
A polymath is a person whose expertise spans a significant number of different subject areas. In less formal terms, a polymath may simply be someone who is very knowledgeable...
, who was put to death with other friends of Geta
Geta
Geta may refer to:*Publius Septimius Geta , a Roman emperor*Geta, Åland, a municipality in Finland*Getå, a minor locality in Sweden*Geta, Nepal*Geta , a type of Japanese footwear...
in December 212, at a banquet to which he had been invited by Caracalla
Caracalla
Caracalla , was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. The eldest son of Septimius Severus, he ruled jointly with his younger brother Geta until he murdered the latter in 211...
shortly after the assassination of his brother.
The first printed edition of De medicina praecepta was edited by Johannes Sulpitius Verulanus, before 1484.