On Medicine (De Re Medica)

PREFACE.

As these matters stand, a man who loves and is an outstanding scholar of Roman literature dared to believe that he would be doing a service if he read and re-read the books of Celsus with the utmost diligence; if he religiously compared copies printed to the best standard with manuscripts of the highest reliability; and if he weighed the different readings of both phrases and words with an impartial scale, so that from this the authentic meaning of the author might emerge, spurious words might be rejected, and those viciously inserted might be erased. No one is ignorant of how arduous and laborious this is. The editor hopes, however, that his work will be acceptable to the learned world, and especially to the medical world.

Celsus, praised in every age but disfigured by many blemishes, now appears in a cleaner state. Passages that had been ignorantly translated in his books now occupy their proper place; those that are missing due to the carelessness of ancient scribes (since it was impossible to replace them) are at least pointed out. Periods, often poorly punctuated, no longer invert the meaning, as they now enjoy the correct commas. Paragraphs, sections, and chapters that had been thoughtlessly cut up and exhausted the reader are restored to a new, yet natural, order.