Title Page of the Latin Canon of Medicine, Venice Edition

What it is

This is the title page of a Latin edition of Avicenna's Canon of Medicine, printed in Venice, with an imprint date of 1608. The page is decorated with a border of engraved medical scenes and portrait medallions of physicians, framing the title in red and black type.

Why it matters

Avicenna, a Persian physician, wrote the original Canon in Arabic. Its translation and repeated printing in cities like Venice shows how central his medical writing became to European medical education for hundreds of years after his death.

Look closer

• What do the engraved medical scenes and portraits around the border suggest about how the book wanted to present medical knowledge?
• Why might a printer in Venice invest in such an elaborately decorated title page?
• What does the repeated printing of this text in Europe tell you about Avicenna's long-term influence?