The ''Mulomedicina Chironis'' (literally, "Chiron's Medicine for Mules") is a 4th-century medical treatise on medicine for treating horses, written in Latin.

Author

The name of the author is stated to be a certain Chiron Centaurus, which was certainly not the author's real name, but was likely a witty pseudonym.

Sources

The ''Mulomedicina Chironis'' lists several sources:

Apsyrtus In Greek mythology, Absyrtus ( Ancient Greek: Ἄψυρτος) or Apsyrtus, was a Colchian prince and the younger brother of Medea. he was involved in Jason's escape with the golden fleece from Colchis The Absyrtides were named after him. Fa ...

Cato the Elder Marcus Porcius Cato (; 234–149 BC), also known as Cato the Censor ( la, Censorius), the Elder and the Wise, was a Roman soldier, senator, and historian known for his conservatism and opposition to Hellenization. He was the first to write histo ...

Columella Lucius Junius Moderatus Columella (; Arabic: , 4 – ) was a prominent writer on agriculture in the Roman Empire. His ' in twelve volumes has been completely preserved and forms an important source on Roman agriculture, together with the wo ...

, Gargilius Martialis, and also some anonymous and lost writings. The book is not a translation of the Greek veterinary texts, the so-called

Hippiatrica The ''Hippiatrica'' (Greek: Ἱππιατρικά) is a Byzantine compilation of ancient Greek texts, mainly excerpts, dedicated to the care and healing of the horse.. The texts were probably compiled in the fifth or sixth century AD by an unknow ...

, although there's no denying the texts are useful to understand the ''Mulomedicina''.

As a Model for Other Works

The ''Mulomedicina Chironis'' is the main source for

Vegetius Publius (or Flavius) Vegetius Renatus, known as Vegetius (), was a writer of the Later Roman Empire (late 4th century). Nothing is known of his life or station beyond what is contained in his two surviving works: ''Epitoma rei militaris'' (also re ...

' ''Mulomedicina''. The same Vegetius says at one point (Mul. 1, prologue 3-4): ''Chiron vero et Apsyrtus diligentius cuncta rimati eloquentiae inopia ac sermonis ipsius vilitate sordescunt.'' ("In spite of their care, Chiron and Apsyrtus don't sound good due to their poor expression and style error.")

Manuscripts

There remain two manuscripts containing the ''Mulomedicina Chironis.'' The first manuscript, the 15th century CLM 243, was found in 1885 at the

Bavarian State Library The Bavarian State Library (german: Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, abbreviated BSB, called ''Bibliotheca Regia Monacensis'' before 1919) in Munich is the central " Landesbibliothek", i. e. the state library of the Free State of Bavaria, the bigg ...

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

Wilhelm Meyer Wilhelm Meyer may refer to: * Wilhelm Franz Meyer (1856–1934), German mathematician * Wilhelm Meyer (philologist) (1845–1917), who identified the poems of Hugh Prima * Wilhelm Meyer, inculpated in the Adolph Beck case * Wilhelm Meyer (physicia ...

. The second manuscript, D III 34, dating from 1495, was discovered in 1988 at

Basel University Library Basel University Library, officially the Public Library of the University of Basel (german: Öffentliche Bibliothek der Universität Basel, abbreviated UB), is the central library of the University of Basel. It also serves as the Cantons of Switz ...

by Werner Sackmann.

Bibliography

* Klaus-Dietrich Fischer. "§513 The so called 'Mulomedicina Chironis' ". In: Reinhard Herzog, Peter Leberecht Shmidt (eds.): ''Handbook of the Latin Literature of Antiquity.'' Vol. 5.: ''Restoration and Renovation 284-374 AD'' 1989. Munich: Beck. . pp. 77–80. Updated French translation in: ''Nouvelle histoire de la littérature latine.'' Vol. 5: ''Restauration et renouveau. La littérature latine de 284 à 374 après J.-C.'' 1995. Paris. pp. 87–90. {{Authority control 4th-century Latin books History of veterinary medicine