Hektoen International

A Journal of Medical Humanities

Tag: George Dunea

  • Lamps in medicine

    Long before modern hospitals existed, lamps played an essential role in patient care, and medical progress often depended on improvements in illumination. In Ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome, oil lamps were commonly used to provide light during examinations and treatments. These lamps burned olive oil and animal fat, enabling physicians to continue their work after…

  • Galla Placida and the city of Ravenna

    A short train ride from Bologna brings visitors to the historic town of Ravenna. A walk from the station past modest hotels leads to a shady park and a lively main street. At the far end, tourists find the sights they likely came for: the magnificent mosaics in the cathedral and the mausoleum of Galla…

  • The Spanish Civil War (1936–1939)

    The Spanish Civil War was fought between the elected Republican government of Spain and the insurgent Nationalist forces led by General Francisco Franco. It determined the future of Spain and also served as a test prelude to World War II, drawing foreign volunteers and professional armies from Germany, Italy, and the Soviet Union. The roots…

  • Four German emperors named Frederick

    After the death of Charlemagne and his successor Louis the Pious, the eastern part of his extensive empire became the Holy Roman Empire and was ruled by various successor dynasties. Included among these was the Hohenstaufen Dynasty (1138–1254), of which the first emperor was called Frederick. 1. Frederick I Barbarossa Frederick Barbarossa (r. 1155–1190) was…

  • The Greeks in Italy: History and medicine

    Beginning around the eighth century BCE, Greek settlers established colonies along the southern coast of the Italian peninsula, notably in Cumae, Neapolis (Naples), Tarentum (Taranto), Sybaris, Croton, Rhegium (Reggio Calabria), and Syracuse. The region became known as Magna Graecia (“Greater Greece”), reflecting the strong influence of Greek culture, language, religion, and learning. Greek colonists, merchants,…

  • Russia’s “Great Patriotic War” and its generals

    When Germany launched Operation Barbarossa on June 22, 1941, its forces advanced with a ferocity that shattered Soviet defenses. Hundreds of thousands of Red Army soldiers were killed, wounded, or taken prisoner. By the winter of 1941, the Wehrmacht stood at the gates of Moscow and of Leningrad. In occupied territories, Nazi racial ideology translated…

  • The death of Emperor Caesar Augustus

    Augustus’s death in CE 14 ended one of the most remarkable lives in Roman history. Born Gaius Octavius in 63 BCE, he was adopted posthumously by Julius Caesar as his son and chief heir. After Julius Caesar’s assassination in 44 BCE, he formed an alliance with Mark Antony and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, hunted down Caesar’s…

  • The death of Joseph Stalin

    On March 1, 1953, the most feared man in the world lay on the floor dying in the Kuntsevo Dacha, outside Moscow, in a pool of his own urine. He had been there for hours. Guards had discovered him sometime after midnight—crumpled beside his bed, a half-empty glass of mineral water nearby—but no one dared…

  • The death of Cicero

    The death of Marcus Tullius Cicero marked the end of one of the most brilliant careers in the history of the Roman Republic. Cicero was not only a statesman and lawyer but also a philosopher, writer, and defender of republican government. His assassination in 43 BCE symbolized the collapse of the Roman Republic and the…

  • Sahara, the desert that once was green 

    The Sahara is the largest desert in the world, stretching across North Africa and covering nine million square kilometers from the Atlantic to the Red Sea.  It has a population of some 2.5 million people, many of whom are nomadic. Although the term “Sahara” conveys an image of emptiness, just as when H.L Mencken wrote…