Medicine maker and dispenser : the apothecary and his art in early modern Malta

Abstract

On the local scene, a comprehensive study of the historical development of the pharmaceutical profession in the Maltese Islands still has to be written. This métier has been presented, for too long, as the poorer relation of the medical profession. The scant interest in the historical evolution of this profession is, in reality, self-inflicted, but it has been the convinced belief of the author, a pharmacist by profession, that extensive research can demonstrate the local social, cultural, economic and political relevance of this art and its members within Maltese society. A quest to discover and present a realistic depiction of the professional and private life of the early modern apothecary, in the Maltese Islands, became the main objective of this study. Embedded in this objective was the opportunity to focus on countless issues, which included: • Examining interrelationships between the speziale and the community, both local and beyond; • Investigating established training processes of the art of the apothecary; • Verifying strategies in the positioning, décor and contents of the apothecary’s workplace, the spezieria; • Examining the impact which each change of political regime had on services provided by the pharmaceutical profession; • Establishing expectations of society from the apothecary and other operators within the health sector; • Determining which legislative structure was in place to safeguard society from these providers, and vice versa. Archival research has been the backbone of this dissertation. This study has also been bolstered by the availability, through international digital libraries, of many primary and secondary sources. Conjointly with archival research, the studying of pharmaceutical literature dating from the period under study was an indispensable necessity, primarily to familiarise oneself with the regulations, practices and opinions of speziali and authors mainly from such countries as Sicily and other Italian states. Moreover, in neighbouring countries, such as Italy and France, there remains an active interest in researching historical aspects of pharmacy. The similarity between scenarios in Malta, and in these countries, was a recurring theme which was explored in this research. The archival documentation which has been examined for this dissertation has been mainly written down in the Italian and Latin languages, with some documents written in French and Spanish. In many instances, names of persons, titles and nomenclature of pharmaceutical preparations appear spelt in different forms, even in the same language. This issue is seen with the Italian words aromatario and speziale, which were the two most frequently used titles for an apothecary in the Maltese Islands during the period under study. Different orthographic versions of these words have been found in documents. When it was deemed appropriate, and in order to offer a certain amount of consistency, the most commonly spelt name or word has been used. Moreover, since the most commonly used language within the examined documentation was Italian, it was decided to favour the Italianised version of names and titles. Use has been made of various forms of unlikely sources, such as poems, paintings and cartoons, to illustrate the perception of the profession by contemporary society. These references assist in eliciting an empathy and understanding of the apothecary’s way of life which the narrative of this study may not always be able to convey.