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Headword: Dêmokêdês
Adler number: delta,442
Translated headword: Demokedes, Democedes
Vetting Status: high
Translation:
[Son] of Kalliphon (a priest of Asklepios born in Knidos); a Krotoniate,[1] a doctor. He practised medicine in Aigina [Myth, Place], where he married, and he also acted as physician to Polykrates, the tyrant of Samos, for two gold talents; and he was summoned by Dareios the Persian and stayed with him for a considerable time. He wrote a medical book.
When Dareios the king was out hunting he twisted his foot while dismounting from his horse, and did so rather violently; for the astragal[2] came out from the joint. He first summoned the Egyptian doctors he had around him, considered to be the foremost, skilled in medical arts. They treated him, but, by twisting and stretching the foot they caused major damage. For seven days and seven nights Dareios could not sleep because of the hurt he was experiencing; but on the eighth day of his affliction someone who had heard, before leaving Sardis, of the skill of Demokedes of Kroton informed Dareios, who ordered [Demokedes] to be brought to him as soon as possible. Finding Demokedes utterly neglected somewhere among Oroetes' slaves, they brought him forward, dragging his chains and dressed in rags. As he stood there on public view, Dareios asked him whether he knew the skill [of a doctor]. Demokedes denied this, fearful that if he revealed himself he would not be able to return to Greece again. It was clear to Dareios that he was trying to trick him by craftiness, and he ordered the men who fetched him to step forward with whips and goads. So then, of course, Demokedes came clean, while maintaining that his learning was imprecise; he had, though, kept company with a physician and thereby picked up some insufficient knowledge of the art. But later Dareios entrusted himself to Demokedes, who with the use of Greek remedies and gentle rather than forcible means -- after such procedures had been tried by others -- succeeded in getting Dareios his sleep and, after a while, healed him completely, though he had lost hope of having the proper use of his foot again. So says Herodotus the historian. [He also says] that Atossa, Kyros' daughter and the wife of Dareios, found an abscess growing in her breast which broke and spread further. As long as it was small, she hid it because of shame and did not tell anyone about it; but when it turned for the worse she sent for Demokedes and showed it to him. He said that he could heal her but made her swear that she would do him any service he asked for in return, saying that he would not ask for anything that was shameful. And what he asked for was his return to Greece.[3]
Greek Original:
Dêmokêdês, Kalliphôntos, hiereôs en Knidôi genomenou Asklêpiou, Krotôniatês, iatros: hos en Aiginêi iatreuse te kai egême kai Polukratên ton Samou turannon iatreusen epi chrusiou talantois duo: kai hupo Dareiou tou Persou metepemphthê kai sunegeneto autôi chronon hikanon. egrapsen iatrikon biblion. hoti Dareios ho basileus en agrêi thêrôn apothrôskôn apo hippou estraphê ton poda kai kôs ischuroterôs: ho gar hoi astragalos exechôrêsen ek tôn arthrôn. nomizôn de kai proteron peri heôuton echein tous dokeontas Aiguptiôn einai prôtous tên iatrikên toutoisin echrêto. hoi de streblountes kai biômenoi ton poda kakon meizon ergazonto. eph' hepta men dê hêmeras kai hepta nuktas hupo tou pareontos kakou ho Dareios agrupniêsin eicheto: têi de dê ogdoêi hêmerêi echonti hoi phlaurôs parakousas tis proteron eti en Sardisi tou Krotôniêteô Dêmokêdeos tên technên angellei tôi Dareiôi: ho de agein min tên tachistên par' heôuton ekeleue. ton de hôs exeuron en toisin Oroiteô andrapodoisin hokou dê apêmelêmenon, parêgon eis meson pedas te helkonta kai rhakesin esthêmenon. stathenta de es meson êrôta ho Dareios, tên technên ei epistaito. ho de ouk apedeketo, orrôdeôn mê heôuton ekphênas toparapan tês Hellados êi apesterêmenos. katephanê te tôi Dareiôi technazein epistamenos: kai tous agagontas auton ekeleuse mastigas te kai kentra parapherein eis to meson. ho de en heôutôi dê ôn ekphainei, phas, atrekeôs men ouk epistasthai, homilêsas de iêtrôi phlaurôs echein tên technên. meta de, hôs epetrepsen, Hellênikoisi iêmasi chreômenos kai êpiamata ta ischura prosagôn hupnou te metalanchanein epoiee kai en chronôi oligôi hugiea min onta apedexen, oudama eti elpizonta artipoun esesthai. houtô phêsin Hêrodotos ho logopoios. hoti kai Atossa, hê Kurou men thugatêr, Dareiou de gunê, epi tou mastou esche phuma, meta de ekragen enemeto prosô. hoson men dê chronon ên elasson, hê de kruptousa kai aischunomenê ephrazen oudeni, epeite de en kakôi ên, metepempsato ton Dêmokêdên kai hoi epedeixen. ho de phas hugiea poiêsein exorkoi min ê men hoi antupourgêsein ekeinên touto, ho an autês deêthêi: deêsesthai de oudenos tôn hosa es aischunên pherei. kai êitêsato tên eis Hellada aphixin.
Notes:
C6 BCE; OCD(4) 434 'Democedes'. See generally Herodotus 3.125.1 (web address 1) and esp. 129-137, the ultimate source -- and named as such -- of most of the material in the present entry. See also delta 74, iota 58, and further cross-references below.
[1] i.e. a citizen of Kroton (in the 'toe' of Italy), to which, presumably, Kalliphon had emigrated.
[2] The ball of the ankle joint, Lat. talus, the biggest of the tarsal bones articulating with the leg bones. This clause is repeated at epsilon 1685; and cf. also alpha 4375.
[3] An heroic abbreviation of the many machinations in the story of Demokedes' return as a guide to the Persians, his flight back to Kroton, etc.
References:
Diels-Kranz, Fragmente der Vorsokratiker 1:110-112
J.P.Dumont, Les présocratiques, Paris 1988, pp. 82-85
Associated internet address:
Web address 1
Keywords: biography; economics; geography; historiography; history; medicine; religion; women
Translated by: Carl Widstrand on 8 January 2000@13:28:08.
Vetted by:
David Whitehead (supplied headword; modified translation; added keywords; cosmetics) on 24 January 2001@08:14:38.
Catharine Roth (cosmetics, link, keywords) on 8 June 2004@11:41:53.
Catharine Roth (added cross-reference) on 1 July 2007@01:41:18.
David Whitehead (augmented notes and keywords) on 1 July 2007@09:03:27.
David Whitehead (more x-refs) on 2 July 2007@09:48:37.
David Whitehead (cosmetics) on 26 June 2012@06:05:10.
Catharine Roth (tweaked note) on 22 August 2013@20:34:36.
David Whitehead (updated a ref) on 3 August 2014@04:47:11.
David Whitehead on 17 October 2015@09:49:04.

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