Abraham Zacutus

A physician and author of medical works, Abraham Zacutus was born in Lisbon and later studied medicine in Coimbra and Salamanca. The descendant of a distinguished New Christian family, Abraham, also known as Manuel Alvares de Tavara, practiced medicine in Lisbon for almost thirty years. In 1625, he settled in Amsterdam, where he practiced Judaism openly and acquired fame and prestige as a physician. Abraham’s medical works were all written in Amsterdam—the first was published in 1629. Following his death, they were printed in two volumes (1642 and 1644). The first contains his medical history. The second, of a more practical nature, begins with guidelines for the physician, followed by a pharmacopeia, and, most prominently, detailed treatises on internal diseases divided into five sections: diseases of the head, diseases of vital organs, women’s diseases, the treatment of fevers, and symptoms of fevers. His precise observations and case studies regarding the plague, fevers, and growths are particularly notable, and Abraham contributed to furthering the understanding of syphilis. He was also one of the first physicians to describe blackwater fever (a complication of malaria).