Rogue Classicist David Meadows, from the Classics-L email discussion group, has pointed out an article on epilepsy in which Dr. Stanley M. Aronson mentions that the ancient Greeks called epilepsy "Herakliea nosos, the illness of Hercules" because Hercules, along with other notables like Julius Caesar, Alexander the Great and possibly Caligula, suffered from it.
He Hath the Falling Sickness
MORE: Caligula
Elsewhere: Zeus
Meadows says that Agatha Christie mentions that Hercules suffered from epilepsy in her "The Twelve Labours of Hercules."
David Meadows' Blog
He Hath the Falling Sickness
MORE: Caligula
Elsewhere: Zeus
Meadows says that Agatha Christie mentions that Hercules suffered from epilepsy in her "The Twelve Labours of Hercules."
David Meadows' Blog
Comments
Interesting that I can find no references for “Herakliea nosos” except for the linked article. And as a avid mythology fan, I don’t recall any such reference.
Bill
Here’s another article that refers to it (in French):
Euripides’ “Herakles” and the Pursuit of Immortality, by E. M. Griffiths.
Mnemosyne, Fourth Series, Vol. 55, Fasc. 6 (2002), pp. 641-656.
This article discusses Euripides’ portrayal of epilepsy:
“Structure and Dramatic Realism in Euripides’ ‘Heracles’,” by Shirley A. Barlow
Greece & Rome, Second Series, Vol. 29, No. 2 (Oct., 1982), pp. 115-125