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Historical Bibliography Updated: June 17, 2026

The alphabet of Galen. Pharmacy from Antiquity to the Middle Ages. A critical edition of the Latin text with English translation and commentary by Nicholas Everett

ALPHABET OF GALEN

Publication Details

Toronto, Canada: University of Toronto Press, 2012 CE.

An edition and translation of Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana, Pal. lat. 187, a late seventh or early eighth century codex, which represents the earliest surviving manuscript of the text. Not written by Galen of Pergamon, the Alphabet of Galen was a handbook of ancient Greek pharmacy, describing 300 natural products (or "simples"), arranged in alphabetical order, transmitted in Latin to the Middle Ages under Galen's name. 

Catalog MetadataReference Information
Entry Number#7409
Permanent Linkhttps://staging.historyofmedicine.com/entry/9581
External URLthe-alphabet-of-galen-pharmacy-from-antiquity-to-the-middle-ages-a-critical-edition-of-the-latin-text-with-english-translation-and-commentary-by-nicholas-everett

Geographic Context

Publication place: Toronto, Canada