Hippocrates - Hippocratis Aphorismi - Ἀφορισμοὶ Ἱπποκράτους [Medicina] - 1784

I present to you the auction 'THE APHORISMS OF HIPPOCRATES', in a magnificent edition in the original Greek version (ἈΠΠΟΚΡΆΤΟΥΣ ἈΦΟΡΙΣΜΟΙ) and parallel Latin translation (HIPPOCRATIS APHORISMI).

Our specimen is not just a book containing the masterpiece of the legendary Greek physician Hippocrates (470-360 BC), considered the father of medicine; it is also an exceptional collectible item, as it is bound with a medieval parchment sheet hand-labeled from an ancient antiphonary.

Hipócrates' 'Aphorisms' (470–360 BC) are the foundational voice of Western medicine without intermediaries. They are not a modern interpretation or a pedagogical summary, but the Hippocratic thought as it was transmitted for centuries, phrase by phrase, aphorism by aphorism. It is the text that doctors, monks, and humanists memorized because it condenses human experience in the face of life, illness, and time.

Life is short, and art is long.
Life is short, art is long.

Reading this in Greek and Latin is not empty erudition: it is precision. Each language illuminates different nuances; each page reminds you that true knowledge arises from observation, prudence, and restraint.

But now comes the decisive part.

The binding in reused parchment leaf from an ancient antiphonary, hand-labeled, elevates the volume to another level. It is not decoration: it is living material history. That parchment was written and sung, patiently traced by a medieval hand that alternated red and black ink to give rhythm, hierarchy, and breath to liturgical chant. Centuries before protecting Hippocrates, that support held sacred music, human voices, and lived time.

We are not talking about a printed page, but about an unrepeatable manuscript, with all its small irregularities, its human pulse, its silence laden with meaning. It is a unique, unrepeatable fragment, torn from the past and turned into the guardian of the most influential medical text in the West. Ancient science wrapped in manuscript liturgy: the body and the spirit united in a single object.

Red and black inks are not just beautiful: they are visual language. They indicate pauses, beginnings, emphasis. They make the book speak even when it is closed. And they do so in a way that no modern reproduction can imitate, because it depends on that specific sheet, that specific gesture, that specific historical moment.

This book is not bought to be read once. It is bought to be kept. To open it slowly. To feel the weight of the parchment, the gentle crackle, the continuity between Greek antiquity, Latin scholasticism, and the Enlightenment of the eighteenth century. It is a book that speaks even when it is closed.

In a modern library filled with industrial paper, this volume stands silently. It says: everything began here. And it also says: this will never be done like this again.

This is one of those pieces that, once in your hands, you know with certainty you shouldn't have let it pass.

Hipócrates' aphorisms bound in medieval antiphonary parchment. Don't let it slip away.

The provided instruction specifies Greek as the original language and Latin as the parallel translation. Since no specific text is included, I will adhere to the guidelines by acknowledging the languages involved and the importance of maintaining the original's integrity and context in any translation process.

Year of publication: Paris, 1784

SIZE AND PAGINATION: Dimensions: 15 x 9 cm. Pagination: Cover + XX + 353 pages. Complete work.

CONDITION: Beautiful binding on reused parchment leaf from an ancient antiphonary, hand-labeled with music notation and Gregorian chant, in good overall condition as shown in the photos.

The interior is in good condition, as shown in the photos. Laid paper without foxing. GOOD EXAMPLE.

Hipócrates' aphorisms bound in medieval antiphonary parchment. Don't let it slip away.

No content provided to translate.

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