62 HUMAN DISSECTION. ITS DRAMA AND STRUGGLE 



In summary, it can be said that the main accomplishment 

 of the Arabians was to keep literature and science alive, by trans- 

 lations of Greek and Roman works, during the numerous bar- 

 barian invasions, between A.D. 200 and 1300. 



D. The Universities of the Middle Ages 



Conspicuous, because of the role they played in the revival 

 of human dissection, were the developing university centers, par- 

 ticularly those in Italy. Between A.D. 1200 and 1350, fifteen were 

 opened. With these, scientific controversy and inquiry began to 

 enliven the student's mind. The open door to post-Alexandrian 

 human dissection was legal permission. This was forthcoming 

 from no less a personage than Frederick II, Emperor of Germany 

 and the two Sicilies. Following this, the practice was to be more 

 lasting but attendant with many vicissitudes, drama and struggles 

 when considering the various countries of the world. The im- 

 portant factor was that it gained a firm foothold from which it 

 could progress (Dempster, '34). 



1. The University of Salerno 



The first university to be established in Europe, which taught 

 medicine, was that at Salerno, located about thirty-five miles south 

 of Naples, on the western coast of Italy. Its origin is obscure; the 

 dates which have been given vary between the 7th and 14th Cen- 

 turies. The Benedictine monks of Monte Cassino originally cared 

 for the sick at neighboring Salerno, which was a noted health re- 

 sort: as a result of their work, a medical school developed in the 

 city. One of the most famous friars was Constantine Africanus, 

 mentioned above, whose works were chiefly translations from 

 Arabian and Greek authors. It was there that Cophon, tlu* 

 younger, wrote De Anatomia Porci which became the standard 

 anatomical text of the institution. Dissections were made of 

 the monkey, pig and bear. Frederick II issued an edict about 

 A.D. 1240 that it was necessary to study anatomy for a year at 

 Salerno or Naples and pass a rigid exam, in order to obtain a li 

 cense as surgeon: one human subject was allotted every five years. 

 There is vague evidence that the administration ordered human 



