[The enchanting word chymiatria--and the attractiveness of the training of physicians at Marburg, 1608-1620: a somewhat different way to calculate the frequency of students].
The number of medical students at the University of Marburg in the early 17th century was so far thought to amount scarcely to a handful, tending towards zero. In contrast to that, this paper identifies for the time from 1600 to 1620 80 students of medicine, 73 just for the twelve years from 1608 to 1620. Almost a third of these, 23, also received their doctorate in Marburg, whereas most of the others went to other universities for this purpose (Basel in particular) or ended their studies as a candidatus medicinae. The highest total number of students of a single year amounts to 28 in 1616. The reason for this rise to one of the most attractive medical faculties in the German-speaking countries was a completely new beginning with the professors Nicolaus Braun, Johannes Hartmann (till 1618), and Heinrich Petraeus (till 1620) following the vacancy of all three professorships of medicine. Of these professors Braun represented the traditional Galenic medicine, whereas Hartmann and Petraeus acted as academic protagonists of the modem chymiatria (the chemical, paracelsian or hermetic medicine), that they made their task to harmonize with the conventional medicine. To that purpose teaching was supplemented by Petraeus with a cleverly devised intensive system of disputing and responding of the college of Nosologia and by Hartmann with a practical training of the students in a chemical laboratory. The new kind of teaching attracted students from many other German and European countries, primarily from Silesia, whereas the number of local students from Hessia remained at its previous very low level.
Krafft
Fritz
F
krafft@staff.uni-marburg.de
D004501:Education, Medical / Q000266:history*; D005858:Germany; D049670:History, 17th Century; D010820:Physicians / Q000266:history*; D012577:Schools, Medical / Q000266:history*; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000266:history*