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SOME ADDITIONS TO THE HISTORY OF SURDOLOGY IN THE REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA
Authors: Ljubomir SAVIKJ
Number of views: 368
Historical truth is that among peoples there have always been people with impaired hearing. As the most striking evidence of that is the cult of Greek god Asclepious (in Greek Asclepious, in Latin Esculap) whose temples were scattered throughout Greece (1), as well as in Epidaurus (the old name of Cavtat) (2) and in Heraclea near Bitola (3).
Both in Epidaurus and Heraclea, almost identical clay tiles with ears shown on them were found which some ill people had offered as gifts in gratitude to god Asclepius. They were so called votive tiles-offerings (in Latin voto, votare = gift, to give a gift) contributed to the temple. There was no written text on them, in contrast to similar ones found in Egypt 3,500 years ago (4). That was the oldest data on deaf people existence on the territory of Macedonia.
Dr. Dimitar Kotevski, who described the tile from Heraclea (5), said that there had been a prototype of a hospital called “Asclepion” according to Asclepius, about 500 meters Southeast of Heraclea, with spring-water nearby which to people’s belief had been holy and healing. There were modeled ears on the tile, and fir cone in between as a symbol of “big generative and creative power, joy and good luck” (6), which should have shown the optimism of man with impaired hearing. Such developed civilized level in Heraclea, under the reign of Philip II Macedonian, had lasted till 479 BC, when it was robbed by Goths, then the Romans, the town was destroyed and abundant, and when the Slavs came, they founded Bitola not far away (7).
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