GALEN ON ANTIDOTES

Charterius Edition Vol. XIII [866]

Basel Edition Vol. II (424)

Every day, the Emperor took a dose of the medicine the size of an Egyptian bean original: Αἰγύπτιος κύαμος (Aigyptios kyamos); the seed of the sacred lotus, used as a standard measure of volume in ancient pharmacy.. He swallowed it either directly without mixing it, or by combining it with water, wine, or a similar liquid.

However, he began to suffer from a heavy drowsiness during his daily affairs. To counter this, he removed the poppy juice original: ὀπὸς τῆς μήκωνος (opos tes mekonos); opium, used in the antidote for its analgesic and calming properties. from the recipe. Soon after, his old habits and his natural constitution original: κρᾶσις (krasis); the unique balance of heat, cold, moisture, and dryness in an individual. caused new problems. Because his nature was quite dry, and because he had taken this drying medication for a long time, he began to spend the greater part of his nights awake.

This insomnia forced him to add the poppy juice back into the mixture. He used a preparation where the juice had already aged for some time. As I have often stated, such medicines become milder and more manageable after they have been stored for a long period.

At that time, the Emperor was stationed near the banks of the Ister The Danube River. because of the German War. I had declined to join that particular expedition. The Emperor highly praised the antidote prepared by Demetrius Demetrius of Apamea, a high ranking physician in the imperial court., the chief physician. After the death of Demetrius, the Emperor wrote to Euphrates the treasurer original: καθολικός (katholikos); a senior financial official responsible for imperial resources, including the supply of rare drugs.. Euphrates was the person from whom Demetrius obtained the simple ingredients for the compound. The Emperor asked him to identify which of those receiving an imperial salary was present and familiar with the formula. He learned that I had been involved throughout the entire process...