§1## ΓΑΛΗΝΟΥ ΠΕΡΙ ΜΗΤΡΑΣ ΑΝΑΤΟΜΗΣ ΒΙΒΛΙΟΝ.
Περὶ μήτρας ὁ λόγος θέσεώς τε καὶ μεγέθους, καὶ σχήματος αὐτῆς, ὅθεν τε ἤρτηται, καὶ ὅθεν τρέφεται, καὶ ὅσοις συμφύεται, καὶ τίνων ψαύει, καὶ περὶ τῶν πλεκόντων αὐτὴν, καὶ ὅσα κυούσης τῆς γυναικὸς ἐντὸς τῆς μήτρας φύεται κατὰ τὸν χορίον ἢ τοὺς τὸ ἔμβρυον περιέχοντας ὑμένας.
Galen's Treatise on the Anatomy of the Uterus. The discussion concerning the uterus is of its position, size, and shape, and whence it is suspended, and whence it is nourished, and with what it is grown together, and what things it touches, and concerning those things which weave it, and whatever things grow inside the uterus when a woman is pregnant, along the chorion or the membranes containing the embryo.
κεῖται μὲν δὴ ἐντὸς τοῦ περιτοναίου, μεταξὺ κύστεως τε καὶ ἀπευθυσμένου, τούτῳ μὲν ἐπικειμένη σχεδὸν ὅλῳ, κύστεως δὲ κατὰ μὲν τὸ πρὸς τὸν ὀμφαλὸν, ἔνθα ὁ πυθμήν ἐστιν αὐτῆς, ὑπερέχουσα ὡς τὰ πολλὰ, κατὰ δὲ τὸ πρὸς τὸ αἰδοῖον ἡ κύστις μήτρας ὑπερέχει τῷ αὐχένι.
Indeed, it lies within the peritoneum, between the bladder and the rectum, lying upon the latter almost in its entirety, but as for the bladder, on the side toward the navel, where its bottom is, the uterus for the most part exceeds it, but on the side toward the pudenda, the bladder exceeds the uterus at its neck.
αὐτῶν δὲ γυναικῶν ἡ μὲν κύστις κατὰ τὸ ἐφήβαιον τέτακται, τὸν αὐχένα μικρότερόν τε καὶ εὐρύτερον ἔχουσα τῆς ἀνδρώας κύστεως, μεταξὺ τῶν τῆς ἥβης καλουμένων ὀστῶν καθήκοντα εἰς τὸ γυναικεῖον αἰδοῖον ἐγγὺς τῷ ἔξω τε καὶ ἄνω πέρατι αὐτοῦ.
In the women themselves, the bladder is situated along the pubic region, having its neck smaller and wider than that of the male bladder, descending between the so-called bones of the pubis into the female pudenda near its outer and upper limit.
τὸ δὲ ἀπευθυσμένον τῷ τε ἱερῷ καλουμένῳ ὀστῷ καί τισι τῶν τῆς ὀσφύος σπονδύλων ἐφίδρυται.
The rectum is seated upon both the so-called sacred bone and some of the vertebrae of the loins.
καὶ γάρ πως καὶ σιμοῦται τὰ ἔνδον ἡ ῥάχις κατὰ τοῦτο, διὸ καὶ ἔξωθεν κυρτὴ καταφαίνεται, ὥς που καὶ Ἱπποκράτης περὶ αὐτῆς εἶπεν.
For in some way the spine is also concave inwards at this point, wherefore from without it also appears convex, as Hippocrates also somewhere said concerning it.
αὕτη δὲ ἡ ῥάχις κατὰ μῆκος ἰθυσκολία ἐστὶν, ἀπὸ μὲν τοῦ ἱεροῦ ὀστέου μέχρι τοῦ μεγάλου σπονδύλου, παρ’ οὗ προσήρτηται ἡ τῶν σκελῶν πρόσφυσις, ἄχρι μὲν τούτου κυφή·
And this spine, along its length, is a 'straight curvature', being concave from the sacred bone up to the great vertebra near which the attachment of the legs is connected; up to this point it is concave.
κύστις τε γὰρ καὶ γονὴ καὶ ἀρχοῦ τὸ χαλαρὸν ἐν τούτῳ ἔγκειται.
For both the bladder and the womb and the loose part of the anus lie within this.
ἀρχὸν μὲν οὖν λέγω τὸ ὅλον ἀπευθυσμένον, καὶ χαλαρὸν δὲ ἀρχοῦ τὸ κάτω μέρος τοῦ ἀπευθυσμένου, ἔνθα καὶ μάλιστα ἀνευρύνεται.
Now, by 'archos' I mean the whole rectum, and by 'the loose part of the archos' the lower part of the rectum, where indeed it is most widened.
καὶ ἐστιν ἐπὶ τέλει αὐτοῦ ὁ καλούμενος σφιγκτὴρ, πρὸς ὃν, οἶμαι, ἀντιδιαστέλλων χαλαρὸν ἔφη τὸ ἄλλο μέρος τοῦ ἀπευθυσμένου, ἔνθα καὶ μάλιστα ἀνευρύνεται.
And at its end is the so-called sphincter, in contrast to which, I think, he called the other part of the rectum 'loose', where indeed it is most widened.
γονὴν δὲ λέγω ἤτοι τὰ γεννητικὰ μόρια, ἢ καὶ αὐτὴν τὴν μήτραν.
And by 'gone' I mean either the generative parts, or indeed the uterus itself.
§2Μέγεθος δὲ οὐκ ἴση μὲν ἐπὶ πασῶν, πολὺ γὰρ ἐλάττων μὲν ἡ τῆς κυησάσης, μείζων δὲ ἡ τῆς ἐγκύου.
In size, it is not equal in all women; for that of one who has given birth is much smaller, while that of one who is pregnant is larger.
καὶ ἥτις οὐδέποτε ἐκύησε, καὶ ταύτης μείων ἐστὶ, καὶ παρὰ τὰς ἡλικίας, αἷς μηδέπω τοῦ λαγνεύεσθαι ὥρα ἢ μηκέτι· καὶ γὰρ καὶ ἄλλως ἐλάττων ἀεὶ ταῖς μὴ λαγνευομέναις.
And the uterus of one who has never been pregnant is smaller still than these, as is also the case according to the ages of those for whom it is not yet the season for sexual intercourse, or no longer so; for indeed, in other respects as well, it is always smaller in those who do not engage in sexual intercourse.
πειρατέον δὲ ὑπογράψαι τό γε μὴν τῆς συμμέτρως ἐχούσης μέγεθος.
One must attempt, however, to sketch the size of one that is of average proportions.
κατὰ μὲν οὖν τὸ ἄνω πέρας τοῦ πυθμένος πλησίον ἐστὶ τῷ ὀμφαλῷ, τὸ κάτω δὲ αὑτῆς πέρας κατὰ τὸ αἰδοῖον τῆς γυναικὸς ἔχει, καὶ ἔστιν ἀπὸ τοῦ τόπου, εἰς ὃν ἐπιβάλλει, ἐπὶ τὸ πέρας τοῦ αἰδοίου τὸ ἔξω οὐκ ἴσον μὲν ἐπὶ πασῶν, ὡς τὸ πολὺ δὲ σύμμετρον τὸ διάστημα δακτύλων ἕνδεκα, κατὰ δὲ τὸ πλάτος ἐφ’ ἑκατέραν τῶν λαγόνων ἐκτείνεται ταῖς αὑτῆς κεραίαις.
Therefore, at the upper limit of the bottom it is near the navel, while its lower limit is situated at the pudenda of the woman, and the distance from the place upon which it impinges to the outer limit of the pudenda is not equal in all, but for the most part the average interval is eleven fingers, and in width it extends toward each of the flanks by its horns.
περὶ δὲ τῶν κατὰ βάθος περάτων ἤδη εἴρηται, ὅτι τε κύστις καὶ ἀπευθυσμένον ὁρίζουσιν αὐτὴν, καὶ ὅτι ἡ μὲν ἐπίκειται, αὐτὸ δὲ ὑπόκειται.
Concerning its limits in depth, it has already been said that both the bladder and the rectum bound it, and that the former lies upon it, while the latter lies beneath it.
αὐτὸ δὲ τὸ αἰδοῖον τὸ γυναικεῖόν ἐστιν ἡ μεταξὺ τῶν τῆς ἥβης ὀστῶν εὐρυχωρία, κατὰ τὰ ἔξω μέρη δερματώδη ἐπίφυσιν ἔχουσα ἀνάλογον τῆς ἐπὶ τῶν ἀῤῥένων πόσθης.
And the female pudenda itself is the spacious area between the bones of the pubis, having on its outer parts a cutaneous growth analogous to the prepuce in males.