Doctors Without Borders: The Professional and Social Identity of Physicians in the Greek World

My project seeks to examine the honorary and citizenship-granting decrees related to physicians in the ancient Greek world. The figure of the iatros (physician) remains under-analysed but offers profound insights into professionalism, social status, and mobility in Antiquity. The study aims to address five primary questions:

1. Did a professional category of physicians exist in the Greek world? 2. What criteria defined a good physician? Were these criteria related to medical knowledge, moral behaviour, or social etiquette? 3. Did the professional group of physicians evolve into a social group? How can we identify a network of professionals with political, cultural, and economic importance?

4. What level of social recognition could physicians attain? Were they skilled craftsmen or members of an intellectual elite? 5. Was the profession of physician a vehicle for social mobility? Did medical education facilitate social climbing and confer honour? In particular, I will investigate the image of the iatros from both literary and material perspectives,

analysing sources like the Corpus Hippocraticum, Herodotus' Histories, Plato's dialogues, and honorary decrees. Using Larson's dimensions of professionalism (cognitive, normative, and evaluative), the study will explore how these apply to physicians and compare them to other professional categories. Archaeological findings related to physicians' tools and work conditions will

also be examined to understand the standardization and market of the medical profession. Additionally, I will analyse the lexicon of honorary decrees to understand whether the physicians - patient relation was based on medical knowledge, the number of healed individuals, or civic behaviour, education, and wealth.

Subsequently, I will explore the social role of the iatros, testing the hypothesis of an international network of professionals and examining the interactions between cities and physicians. The mobility of physicians, evidenced by honours given to foreign doctors, suggests a professional and social network across poleis. The project will investigate the reasons for employing foreign physicians,

considering contingent circumstances or other factors. Comparisons with granting citizenship to athletes will be used to understand the physicians' role as both professional and political. Thus, the project will analyse the plural identities of the physician-professional, personal, magisterial, and political or priestly-to determine if honours were granted for personal worth or

professional performance. It will examine cooperative and competitive honour models and whether honours compensated for euergetism or professional service. In this perspective, the intrinsic connection between Medicine and Religion in the Greek world will also be explored. Finally, the project will investigate the educational path of physicians, examining routes to medical

knowledge acquisition, including family inheritance, specialized schools, and internships, analysing the economic means required for access to these educational opportunities. In conclusion, I intend to address themes particularly relevant to contemporary society, such as professionalism, social mobility, and international networks. A thorough analysis of the world of

physicians as a professional category and a social community can contribute to the current debates as an opportunity to provide historically well attested examples of integration and social mobility.