On the Medicine of Horses: An Edition and Translation of De Medicina Equorum by Jordanus Ruffus

De Medicina Equorum (On the Medicine of Horses) by Jordanus Ruffus of Calabria is a foundational medieval treatise on horse care and the treatment of equine diseases. Drawing on his experience as a stablemaster at the court of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, Jordanus Ruffus combines practical guidance, clinical observation, and theoretical knowledge to provide a comprehensive account of equine management and health in the thirteenth century. This edition, based on Heironymous Molin's Latin transcription, presents the treatise in its first complete English translation, making an influential medieval text accessible to modern readers for the first time.This book is divided into three parts, beginning with an introduction to Jordanus Ruffus, his treatise, and its reception by Molin and modern historians. The second, larger part provides a facing-page Latin-English translation of the full text of De Medicina Equorum. The third part of this edition is a glossary, which provides some of the more important Latin terms with English translations and comparisons to modern equine diseases.On the Medicine of Horses is essential reading for students and scholars of historical horsemanship, human-animal relationships, and medieval veterinary studies, as well as practitioners interested in historical approaches to equine care.

About the Author

Emma Herbert-Davies holds an honours degree in History, an MA in Medieval Studies, and a PhD from the University of Leeds. A lifelong equestrian, she is the author of The Warhorse in England: 1272-1327 (2025), co-editor of The Horse in History: Festschrift in Honour of John Clark (2024) and has published several peer-reviewed articles and book chapters on medieval horses. Her current research focuses on medieval veterinary medicine, with particular attention to how veterinary knowledge and practices were developed, circulated, and transmitted across Latin and vernacular traditions in the Middle Ages.