Aemilia Hilaria

Aemilia Hilaria (c. 300 – c. 363)[1] was a Gallo-Roman physician. She practiced medicine, and wrote books on gynecology and obstetrics. She was called "Hilaria" due to her cheerfulness as a baby.[2]

Aemilia Hilaria
Bornc. 300
Moselle, Roman Empire
Diedc. 363
Occupationphysician
RelativesAusonius (nephew)

Early life

Aemilia was born in the Roman Empire, the area of present Moselle, France. She was the daughter of Caecilius Agricius Arborius and Aemilia Corinthia Maura, both poor nobles from Gaul.[3]

Physician

She continued to live in the area as an adult and became a physician there.[1] Aemilia was the maternal aunt of Ausonius, a Gallo-Roman senator who became tutor to the Emperor Gratian. Ausonius wrote a series of biographical poems about his family members, including Ameilia, called Parentalia.[4] Everything we know today about Aemilia and her family comes from Parentalia.[3] His poem about his aunt described her as a "dedicated virgin", who rejected marriage in order to further her career. He described her as "trained in the medical arts as well as any man."[5] He called her an honest and skilled physician, who also assisted her physician brother in his own studies.[1]

Aemilia is a featured figure on Judy Chicago's installation piece The Dinner Party, being represented as one of the 999 names on the Heritage Floor.[6]

References
  1. Ogilvie, Marilyn Bailey; Joy Harvey (2000). The biographical dictionary of women in science: pioneering lives from ancient times to the mid-20th century. Taylor & Francis US. p. 11. ISBN 978-0-415-92038-4. Retrieved 16 December 2011.
  2. Gardner, Jane F. (1991). Women in Roman Law and Society (1st ed.). Indiana University Press. p. 182. ISBN 0-253-20635-9. OCLC 933449277.
  3. "Aemilia Hilaria (fl. 350 CE) | Encyclopedia.com". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  4. Decimus Magnus, Ausonius (1886). Rudolfus Peiper. (ed.). Opuscula. Part 3, Domestica, 33. Leipzig.
  5. Furst, Lilian R. (1999). Women Healers and Physicians: Climbing a Long Hill. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky. p. 144. ISBN 0-8131-0954-X. OCLC 934008639.
  6. "Aemilia". Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art: The Dinner Party: Heritage Floor. Brooklyn Museum. 2007. Retrieved 16 December 2011.

Bibliography
  • Hurd-Meade, Kate Campbell (1938). A History of Women in Medicine. Haddam Press; First edition.
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