The Links between Medical School of Bologna and Ionian Academy

Abstract

The Ionian Academy, on the British domination island of Corfu ( Kerkyra), was founded in 1824 and his Medical School functioned during two separate periods (1824-1828, 1844-1865). It was the first Greek University. Among th 15 professors of the Academy's Medical School, 12 studied at various Italian Universities. In particular , three of them, G. Therianos, Professor of Comparative Anatomy and Experimental Physics, G. Grassetti, Professor of Physiology and S. Arvanitakis, Professor of Pathology and Hygiene, either studied or graduated at the Medical School of Bologna University. Another Bologna graduate, Rokkos Pylarios, was appointed to the chair of Professor in Surgery and Gynecology- though it is not known if he actually took up the position. It is concluded that the Medical School of Bologna, as a centre of original medical study, contributed significantly to the foundation and development of the Ionian Accademy. Moreover, the Greek Physicians who had studied either at the University of Bologna or at the Ionian Academy, contributed to the renaissance of neohellenic medicine during the 19th century.