Syphilis, Ou, Le Mal Vénérien, Poëme Lat. Avec La Tr. En Fr. Et Des Notes [By P. Macquer and J. Lacombe].

by Girolamo Fracastoro

This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book.

196 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1530

Reviews

[Daniel C · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started reading this work as part of an online class I took part in over the summer and finished on my own later. Initially i found it fairly hard in the beginning where the description of the long lurking causes of the sickness were very Lucretian and even had an usual infinitive form -ier. The author's very graphic section on the signs of the disease was a little hard to follow as well as stomach because of the medical terms. Afterwards, however, the more epic sections on the crossing or the ocean, the warnings of Apollo's birds, and the journey into the home of the metal nymphs were very pleasant. One of my favorite parts was when the author used the same simile as Ovid did for Apollo's burning love for Daphne when describing the initial spread of the disease.

Ovid
utque leves stipulae demptis adolentur aristis,
ut facibus saepes ardent, quas forte viator
vel nimis admovit vel iam sub luce reliquit,

Fracastoro
Ut saepe in stipulas cecidit cum forte favilla
De face, neglectam pastor quam liquit in arvo,

The only section I could complain about was the dietary recommendations, in particular which leafy greens were best. I think I could no sooner read that confidently than accurately describe all the elements of mesclun mix in English. Anyway 10/10, never imagined I would read something like that when I was leaning Latin in college.