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The Great Adventure of Medical Knowledge

Photo : DR

Sep 14 – Jan 2

The Great Adventure of Medical Knowledge

Discover the hidden history of medical practice through ancient illuminated manuscripts and centuries-old surgical instruments. This exhibition charts the fascinating cross-cultural journey of knowledge, proving that healing has always been a collaborative human adventure. Take a moment this weekend to explore the scientific wisdom that shaped our modern world.

L'Institut du Monde Arabe (Paris 5th)

About

From Greece to Rome, from Rome to Alexandria, from Alexandria to Baghdad, from Baghdad to Padua... medical knowledge uses the book as its main tool, a book that also bears witness to the extraordinary continuity of the medical ethics, particularly in its relationship with patients. Medical texts remain alive, as evidenced by numerous works annotated and commented on by doctors of several generations, sometimes in different languages.

Between the 7th and 16th centuries of the common era, the Arab-Muslim world deeply marked medicine through a major evolution in both concepts and techniques. This long period opens and closes with a linguistic revolution: the passage from Greek to Arabic, then from Arabic to Latin, two privileged moments of questioning and debate.

In the five themes of the exhibition's journey – translating, transmitting, debating, experimenting, treating – sumptuously illuminated manuscripts, incunabula, and prints illustrated with engravings occupy the heart of the presentation, alongside objects used in pharmacopeia and surgery. In parallel with the heritage collection, digital animations invite visitors to discover the geography of this medical adventure, its great figures, their theories on the body, their consultation practices, their recommendations for maintaining good health, the manufacturing of compound medicines...

The exhibition aims to raise awareness of medical knowledge as the product of a centuries-old mixture of people and influences, advocating tolerance and openness to others in our times of identity withdrawal and certainty.

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