The Greek physician Galen was one of the originators of the science of anatomy (the study of the structure of living things) and was probably the most important physician of all time. His surviving writings make up about half of all ancient writings on medicine.
Early life
Various birth dates for Galen, from 127 to 132, have been suggested, but 130 is generally accepted. He was born at Pergamon, Asia Minor, into a wealthy family that valued education. Galen's father, Nicon, was a mathematician, architect, astronomer, and lover of Greek literature. He was Galen's only teacher up to the age of fourteen and a strong role model. In his book On the Passions and Errors of the Soul Galen says he was "fortunate in having the most devoted of fathers," but of his mother he says "she was so very much prone to anger that sometimes she bit her handmaids; she constantly shrieked at my father and fought with him."
