From jsiegel@nimbus.ocis.temple.edu Sun Feb 21 09:03:18 1999
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Date: Sun, 21 Feb 1999 12:00:29 -0500
From: Janice Siegel <jsiegel@nimbus.ocis.temple.edu>
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To: classics@u.washington.edu
Subject: Re: Blind individuals in the ancient world
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I'd start at places like Epidavros - healing sanctuaries where there are
records of injuries/illnesses treated. Or do you want only famous
people?

When I traveled with the American school, I was seized with the idea for
a future research project: to search all known records at healing
sanctuaries and compare them, looking for famous hypochondriacs of
antiquity!

Another note on blindess, though: I visited a small church on Hydra, The
Church of Agia Paraskevi (a fairly common name, granted). This
particular church was devoted to helping people with eye trouble - the
entire place was filled to bursting with eye votives, hanging like
Christmas tree ornaments everywhere! And the best was the care-taker who
explained this all to us while praising the saint, and who wore
coke-bottle glasses an inch thick! But he could see...
Not a story about blindness in antiquity, but these are the kinds of
places you could search out...

Good luck, Janice

Janice Siegel
Intellectual Heritage Program
Temple University
http://nimbus.temple.edu/~jsiegel



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