What was the Empiric school of ancient medicine?

The Empiric school of medicine was founded in Alexandria during the mid-third century BC and derived its knowledge strictly from experience rather than unobservable dogmas. It stood in direct opposition to the Dogmatic school and relied heavily on direct observation, historical records of past observations, and a theory-free method of inference called epilogism. This medical sect exerted a major influence across ancient Greece and Rome, surviving well into the fourth century AD.

What we know

• The Empiric school of medicine was founded in Alexandria in the middle of the third century BC by Serapion of Alexandria and Philinus of Cos. [2]
• The school derived its name from empeiria, meaning experience, because its practitioners professed to base their knowledge solely on experiences rather than opposing dogmatic doctrines. [2]
• Epilogism served as one of the three main sources of knowledge for the Empiric school, functioning as a theory-free method of inference relying on reflection of what is visible and evident. [4]
• Doctrines of the Empiric school were documented by Aulus Cornelius Celsus in the introduction to his work De Medicina. [2]

Where to go next

• whoWho founded the Empiric school?
• how it workedHow did epilogism work in ancient medical theory?
• compared withWhat was the Dogmatic school of ancient medicine?
• whereHow did the Alexandria School of Medicine develop?
• the bigger pictureHow did ancient medicine evolve over time?
• an unexpected connectionHow does Epicurean philosophy connect to ancient medical practice?The theory-free method of inference called epilogism was utilized by Epicurus in discussions of time and hedonism, and simultaneously served as a core foundational source of knowledge for the Empiric school of medicine.

Sources

• [1]empiric school (Wikidata Q1339348) · CC0 1.0
• [2]Empiric school · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [3]History of medicine · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [4]Epilogism · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [5]Alexandria School of Medicine · CC BY-SA 4.0

Your path

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