Les substances médicales

Medicinal Substances – Historical and Geographical Aspects

Workshop

Wednesday, June 14, 2017

University Library, Braunschweig, Universitätsplatz 1

The history of medicine is rich in accounts of the use of medicinal substances. Usually, research projects in this field either focus on a certain region or on a certain time period. To date, few accounts cross the borders of cultures, periods and languages. The understanding of this issue is a priority for scholars who are working on the history of both medicine and medicinal substances. This workshop aims at being the starting point for historical work from multiple perspectives on the medical and pharmaceutical use of different therapeutical substances from antiquity to Early Modern times. 

The workshop is devided into two sections:

▪▪ In the first, “multi-regional” section, we will cover a wide geographical range, from the Chinese empire to Europe during the Ottoman era; discussions will focus on the mapping of materia medica in Chinese sources, the new iatrochemistry in the Ottoman era, and finally the understanding and classifying of historical drugs in Europe.

▪▪ The second, Arabic section will shed light on the Arabic civilization, an important stage in the global history of the development of medicine; the talks in this section will correspond to two of the three main classification categories used by physicians in this period, namely herbs and minerals. Here, the discussion will go deeper into the relationship between stones and alchemy, and the theory and practice of substituting herbal components in Arabic medicine.

This workshop will provide an essential platform for understanding the usage of medicinal substances in multiple historical periods, geographical regions, and civilizations.

Programm

13:00 Opening of the Conference

Greetings

Introduction: Dr. Ayman Yasin Atat (TU Braunschweig)

13:30 – 15:45 Section I

13:30 Dr. Michael Stanley-Baker (Max Planck Institute for the History of Science)

“Datamining, Visualising and Mapping Materia Medica in Chinese Sources”

14:15 Doc. Dr. Rainer Brömer (Istanbul University)

“New Iatrochemistry in the Ottoman Empire in the 17th and 18th Centuries”

15:00 Prof. Dr. Bettina Wahrig (TU Braunschweig)

“Understanding, Registering and Classifying Historical Drugs in Europe (16th to 19th Century): The Sammlung Schneider”

15:45 Coffee Break

16:15 – 17:45 Section II

16:15 Prof. Dr. Regula Forster (Freie Universit.t Berlin/ University of Zurich)

“Of Stones and the Stone. Arabic Medicine and Alchemy”

17:00 Dr. Ayman Yasin Atat (TU Braunschweig)

“Herbal Components in Arabic Medicine and Pharmacopoeias: Substituting Simples Drawing on Galenic Qualities – the Example of Al Shirwānī”

17:45 – 18:00 End of Conference and Closing Remarks

Organized by Dr. Ayman Yasin Atat, Philipp Schwartz Fellow, Prof. Dr. Bettina Wahrig, Head of Department, 

Technische Universit.t Braunschweig

Department of the History of Science and Pharmacy

Beethovenstr. 55

38106 Braunschweig

www.tu-braunschweig.de/pharmaziegeschichte

Registration

For further information please contact Miriam Statnik: m.statnik@tu-braunschweig.de

Language: The workshop will be in English