Antall József szerk.: Orvostörténeti közlemények 73-74. (Budapest, 1975)

ELŐADÁSOK — KISEBB KÖZLEMÉNYEK - R. Pető Mária: Csecsemőgondozás a római kori Pannóniában

Summa ry Roman medicine has achieved significant results not only in the field of healing but in the organization of public health, too. These achievements spread in the territories occupied by the Romans, among others in Pannónia, too. The paving of the roads, the building of canals and water-conduits, the heating of the houses made a healthier way of living possible and the furthered the prevention of diseases. In the Roman age due to the specialization of physicians, the activity of the surgeons, oculists, obstetricians and military surgeons separated. With the aid of the archeological material and the classical writings that have come down to us we may reconstruct the knowledge and practice of the Romans in the field of infant-care. Child birth was conducted mainly by midwives. Feeding of babies happened by suckling or by employing nurses. This latter was especially wide-spread during the imperial period among the aristocrats. Besides the references of Soranos, there are material proofs of artificial baby feeding, too. In the territory of Hungary, glass fedding bottles have been found in the graves of infants. The shape of these bottles, the circumstance of their occur ranee, as well as their ancient and classical predecessors make it clear that they were used for feeding babies and not for giving medicaments. The representation of the mother sucking her baby is not rare on monuments found in the territory of Hungary: reliefs on tomb-stones and small terracotta statues. The cult of the Nutrix or Matróna has its roots in local religious traditions of Celtic origin. Mária R. PETŐ, Dr. phil. Research Fellow of the Department of Archeology at the Budapest Historical Museum BTM Régészeti osztálya H

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