This stone statue of Hippocrates can be seen on the main façade of the College alongside the statues of Asklepios and Hygeia.
These three statues were sculpted in a classicised style by Alexander Ritchie. In this particular statue the slight incline of Hippocrates' head and the hand raised toward the chin give the impression that he is deep in thought. He also holds a book, possibly the Corpus Hippocraticum. Hippocrates is also the only non-mythical figure to be represented on the College's façade.
Three busts of Hippocrates can also be found in the College's collection.
Hippocrates (c.460 - 370 B.C.E.)
Hippocrates was a Greek physician and the originator of what is now called Hippocratic medicine. In his lifetime he was renowned as a teacher. Hippocrates is also strongly associated with the Corpus Hippocraticum, a collection of writings which date approximately from the fifth to the third century B.C.E.. Whilst the authorship of this work was traditionally attributed to Hippocrates this is now a matter of scholarly debate as the authorship appears to have changed over the period of its composition. However, it is now certain that two of the works are known to have been written by Polybus, Hippocrates’ son-in-law. The collection is significant because it established medicine as a practice separate from philosophy and religion. Also significant from a medical-historical perspective are the observations and arguments which the texts make about diseases, medical problems and other factors effecting health. This corpus also set out the theory of the four humours and the idea that perfect health was achieved by balancing these, usually through the pursuit of a specific diet and regimen. Furthermore, laid out in the introduction is the Hippocratic Oath which formed the basis of the ethical model to be followed by medical professionals.
The first recorded books in the College’s library were donated by Sir Robert Sibbald in the late seventeenth century and amongst these works was ‘Hippocrates in Greek’.