Talk by Serena Mambriani
24 October 2025 – 5 PM (CEST)
Do celestial bodies influence human beings?
This question was central to early modern debates on the role of astrology in medicine and was of great significance to Buonafede Vitali Senior (1686–1745), a court physician in Parma during the reign of Philip of Bourbon, and his son, Buonafede Vitali Junior, who continued his father’s legacy in medicine and science. Both father and son answered this question in the affirmative, convinced of the profound connections between natural astrology and medical knowledge.
At a time when the intellectual elite increasingly dismissed astrology as a remnant of folk medicine, the Vitalis family defended its epistemological value in medical science and practice. They considered knowledge of planetary influences to be essential for understanding the body’s interaction with its environment and saw astrology as fundamental not only in diagnosis and treatment, but also in educating future physicians.
Using archival materials from the Vitali Verga Archive, which is part of the State Archives of Parma, this study examines the historical transition of astrology from a mathematical system integrating astronomy and natural philosophy, to a practice that was dismissed as folk superstition.
By contextualising the contributions of the Vitali family within the evolving field of medical theory, this research sheds light on the role of astrology in early medical practices. Through a critical analysis of the Vitalis family's astro-medical and hermetic texts, this paper will examine the dynamic interplay between tradition and emerging scientific methods in shaping paradigms that sought to connect the cosmos with human health.
To register, please click on the following link:
CSMBR - The Body and the Stars
Do celestial bodies influence human beings?
This question was central to early modern debates on the role of astrology in medicine and was of great significance to Buonafede Vitali Senior (1686–1745), a court physician in Parma during the reign of Philip of Bourbon, and his son, Buonafede Vitali Junior, who continued his father’s legacy in medicine and science. Both father and son answered this question in the affirmative, convinced of the profound connections between natural astrology and medical knowledge.
At a time when the intellectual elite increasingly dismissed astrology as a remnant of folk medicine, the Vitalis family defended its epistemological value in medical science and practice. They considered knowledge of planetary influences to be essential for understanding the body’s interaction with its environment and saw astrology as fundamental not only in diagnosis and treatment, but also in educating future physicians.
Using archival materials from the Vitali Verga Archive, which is part of the State Archives of Parma, this study examines the historical transition of astrology from a mathematical system integrating astronomy and natural philosophy, to a practice that was dismissed as folk superstition.
By contextualising the contributions of the Vitali family within the evolving field of medical theory, this research sheds light on the role of astrology in early medical practices. Through a critical analysis of the Vitalis family's astro-medical and hermetic texts, this paper will examine the dynamic interplay between tradition and emerging scientific methods in shaping paradigms that sought to connect the cosmos with human health.
To register, please click on the following link:
CSMBR - The Body and the Stars
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