Paratext in Antidotarium Cassoviense (1732).

Abstract

Paratext in Antidotarium Cassoviense (1732) In 1732, a work known as Antidotarium Cassoviense was published in Košice, which represents the first attempt at a pharmacopoeia in the territory of Hungarian kingdom. It is very brief, with 28 pages in quarto format. The paper deals with the paratext of the Košice Antidotarium. It contains a translation of all its parts from Latin into Slovak as well as a commentary on them. The parts of the paratext are the title page, the preface, the appendix, the approval of the doctors and the colophon. The preface names two reasons for the publication, one, to try to restore the reputation of the city pharmacy, the other, to help the health of the reader, the city of Košice and the whole Upper Hungary. The paratext mentions three times the removal of old, ineffective medicines, which were even burned in public. The author of the text, the provisor Thaurenti, begs the reader to trust this work and invites him to cooperate.