Timeline
700 BCE
Homer writes of Apollo, the bringer and reliever of plagues in The Iliad
600 BCE
The rise of Greek science and philosophy: Thales begins inquiries about nature and physics
580 BCE
Pythagoras born at Samos; later founds a scientific and philosophical cult
480 BCE
Empedocles born; noted philosopher and physician
460 BCE
The most noted "Hippocrates" born; the Hippocratic Corpus begins its formation
384 BCE
Aristotle born; noted philosopher and scientist
334–325 BCE
Alexander the Great conquers Egypt, the Middle East and Western India, bringing Greek culture and learning
330 BCE–100 CE
Alexandria serves as a center for Greek scholarship, including medicine
146 BCE
Greece becomes a Roman protectorate
50–70 CE
Dioscorides writes Περι υλης ιατρικης, known in Latin as De materia medica
129 CE
Galen born; noted physician
150 CE
Artemidorus writes Oneirocritica
476 CE
As the Western Roman Empire falls, Western physicians begin to lose contact with Greek scholars and texts in the East
632–1200 CE
Islam grows, eventually taking over Egypt and much of the Hellenized Middle East; Arab medical scholars take an intense interest in the Greek physicians; texts are copied in Greek and translated into Arabic
1200–1350 CE
News from Crusaders and texts found during their raids renew Western scholars’ interest in Greek medicine; the Greek language is mostly unknown, however
1450–1598 CE
With the fall of Constantinople in 1453, many Byzantine scholars emigrate to Italy, bringing Greek texts and teaching the language; Greek medical texts are printed with vigor and studied dogmatically
1540–1800 CE
Western scholars begin to question the data in Greek medical texts, but take up their methods of scientific enquiry and experimentation, developing modern Western medicine
1800 CE
Greek medical texts become the focus of modern Classical scholars and historians of medicine