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Andrés Piquer (1711–1772) was a Spanishphysician,philosopher,logician,writer andauthor. During the eighteenth century, a critique and re-evaluation of theHippocratic Corpus within Spanish universities was pushed byGalenist scholars. Piquer contributed to this analysis of the corpus and served as a philosopher and doctor to the KingsFerdinand VI andCharles III.
Piquer is recognized for his translations of Hippocratic treatises from ancient Greek to Spanish and his efforts to transform medical university instruction in Spain to followHippocratic theory. Piquer's translation and commentary of Epidemics 1 and 3, and partially Epidemic 2, are noteworthy. His medical and physiological work relates to Hippocrates and the medical theories ofThomas Sydenham, 'the English Hippocrates', who is recognized for his workObservationes Medicae (1676).
Piquer was the son of an Aragonese father and a Valencian mother. He studied Latin and grammar in the town ofLa Fresneda, Aragon. In 1727, at age 16, he moved toValencia. In 1734, he graduated from theUniversity of Valencia as a student of philosophy and medicine.[1]
Piquer published his first work,Medicina Vetus Et Nova, in 1735 in order to gain important positions at the General Hospital of Valencia and at the University of Valencia. He was appointed by the university to conduct health research in the city and nearby regions.
In 1741 Piquer became friends withGregorio Mayans. With Mayans's assistance, Piquer was appointed chair of Anatomy at the University of Valencia in 1742, and shortly afterwards became a doctor at the General Hospital of Valencia. While holding these positions, Piquer publishedThesis Medico-anatomicae,[2] which emphasized the importance of dissection and microscopic investigation. Piquer also collaborated with Mayans at the Valencian Academy, which Mayans founded in 1742.
In 1745 Piquer published the first volume ofModern, rational, and experimental physics. This text concerned various subjects. For instance, he referred to fossils as "figurative stones", and he denouncedcreationism by claiming that the stones were petrified remains of living beings.
He publishedModern Logic in 1747, andTratado de Calenturas in 1751.
In 1751, Piquer was appointed doctor toFernando VI and moved to Madrid.
In 1752, he was appointed vice president of the Royal Medical Academy and member of the Royal Protomedical Tribunal.
As a reward for his royal service and upon Piquer's request, the king funded the construction of a church inFórnoles, Piquer's hometown. This church was simply known as "El Iglesia de Fórnoles" (The Church of Fórnoles), and featured the highest tower in the province ofTeruel.
Piquer wrote inLatin andCastilian. As a philosopher, he favoredeclecticism. Piquer was influenced byHippocrates. His work as a physician married Hippocratic theory with experimental medicine. Piquer followedScholasticism but was influenced by foreign ideas of Enlightenment. As a result, he became one of the leading figures ofNovatores in the earlySpanish Enlightenment period.
His first book on rational and experimental modern physics was published in Spanish in 1745. He also authoredModern Logic (1747). Between 1757 and 1770 Piquer translated a three-volume work of Hippocrates into Castilian.
