Abraham ben David Caslari
Encyclopedia
Abraham ben David Caslari was a Spanish-Jewish physician. He lived at Besalu, Catalonia
, in the first half of the fourteenth century. Caslari was considered one of the most skillful physicians of his time. He was the teacher of Moses Narboni of Perpignan
, and one of the ten notables to whom, in 1323, Kalonymus ben Kalonymus
of Arles
addressed his treatise on morals, entitled, Eben Bochan (Touchstone).
He is also said to have translated into Latin the Antidotarium of Razi
. The Book of Foods, written by Isaac Israeli the Elder
, is falsely ascribed to Caslari. Profiat Duran Efodi
of Perpignan, called in Hebrew "Isaac b. Moses ha-Levi," borrowed from Caslari the astronomic note which he cites in his commentary on the Moreh Nebukim of Maimonides
. Caslari is also mentioned by Nissim Gerondi (Responsa, No. 33).
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Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
, in the first half of the fourteenth century. Caslari was considered one of the most skillful physicians of his time. He was the teacher of Moses Narboni of Perpignan
Perpignan
-Sport:Perpignan is a rugby stronghold: their rugby union side, USA Perpignan, is a regular competitor in the Heineken Cup and seven times champion of the Top 14 , while their rugby league side plays in the engage Super League under the name Catalans Dragons.-Culture:Since 2004, every year in the...
, and one of the ten notables to whom, in 1323, Kalonymus ben Kalonymus
Kalonymus ben Kalonymus
Kalonymus ben Kalonymus ben Meir was a Provençal Jewish philosopher and translator. He studied philosophy and rabbinical literature at Salonica, under the direction of Senior Astruc de Noves and Moses ben Solomon of Beaucaire...
of Arles
Arles
Arles is a city and commune in the south of France, in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, of which it is a subprefecture, in the former province of Provence....
addressed his treatise on morals, entitled, Eben Bochan (Touchstone).
Works
Abraham was the author of the following medical works, still extant in manuscript:- Aleh Ra'anan (Verdant Leaf), or, as it is quoted by Judah ben Natan, Aleh ha-Refu'ah (The Leaf of Healing), a treatise on fevers, divided into five books and completed in November 1326. The author says that he wrote the book at the request of his friends, who wished to possess a vade mecum on these matters.
- Ma'mar be-Qaddachot ha-Debriyot u-Mine ha-Qaddachot, a treatise on pestilential and other fevers, composed in 1349, when the Black DeathBlack DeathThe Black Death was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, peaking in Europe between 1348 and 1350. Of several competing theories, the dominant explanation for the Black Death is the plague theory, which attributes the outbreak to the bacterium Yersinia pestis. Thought to have...
decimated the populations of ProvenceProvenceProvence ; Provençal: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a region of south eastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...
, Catalonia, and AragonAragonAragon is a modern autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. Located in northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces : Huesca, Zaragoza, and Teruel. Its capital is Zaragoza...
. - Dine ha-Haqqazah (Rules for Bleeding), Turin MS. No. 121.
- Mekalkel Machalah (Who Sustains in Sickness), only an extract from which has been preserved (Neubauer, Cat. Bodl. Hebr. MS. No. 2142, 39).
He is also said to have translated into Latin the Antidotarium of Razi
Al-Razi
Muhammad ibn Zakariyā Rāzī , known as Rhazes or Rasis after medieval Latinists, was a Persian polymath,a prominent figure in Islamic Golden Age, physician, alchemist and chemist, philosopher, and scholar....
. The Book of Foods, written by Isaac Israeli the Elder
Isaac Israeli ben Solomon
Isaac Israeli ben Solomon , also known as Isaac Israeli the Elder and Isaac Judaeus, was one of the foremost physicians and philosophers of his time. He is regarded as the father of medieval Jewish Neoplatonism...
, is falsely ascribed to Caslari. Profiat Duran Efodi
Profiat Duran
Profiat Duran , also known as Efodi ; also known as Isaac ben Moses ha-Levi; was a physician, philosopher, grammarian, and controversialist in the 14th century. It is not known whether he was born at Perpignan, where he lived for some years, or in another Catalonian town...
of Perpignan, called in Hebrew "Isaac b. Moses ha-Levi," borrowed from Caslari the astronomic note which he cites in his commentary on the Moreh Nebukim of Maimonides
Maimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
. Caslari is also mentioned by Nissim Gerondi (Responsa, No. 33).
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