§3.19Περὶ δὲ αἵματος ὧδε ἔχει·
Concerning blood, the case is as follows.
τοῦτο γὰρ πᾶσιν ἀναγκαιότατον καὶ κοινότατον τοῖς ἐναίμοις, καὶ οὐκ ἐπίκτητον, ἀλλ’ ὑπάρχει πᾶσι τοῖς μὴ φθειρομένοις.
For this is the most necessary and most common to all red-blooded animals, and not acquired, but exists in all that are not perishing.
Πᾶν δ’ αἷμά ἐστιν ἐν ἀγγείῳ, ἐν ταῖς καλουμέναις φλεψίν, ἐν ἄλλῳ δὲ οὐδενὶ πλὴν ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ μόνον.
And all blood is in a vessel, in the so-called veins, and in no other place except in the heart alone.
Οὐκ ἔχει δὲ αἴσθησιν τὸ αἷμα ἁπτομένων ἐν οὐδενὶ τῶν ζῴων, ὥσπερ οὐδ’ ἡ περίττωσις ἡ ἐν τῇ κοιλίᾳ· οὐδὲ δὴ ὁ ἐγκέφαλος οὐδ’ ὁ μυελὸς οὐκ ἔχει αἴσθησιν ἁπτομένων.
And the blood has no sensation when touched in any of the animals, just as the residue in the stomach has none; nor indeed do the brain or the marrow have any sensation when touched.
Ὅπου δ’ ἄν τις διέλῃ τὴν σάρκα, γίνεται αἷμα ἐν ζῶντι, ἐὰν μὴ ᾖ διεφθαρμένη ἡ σάρξ.
And wherever one cuts the flesh of a living animal, blood appears, unless the flesh is destroyed.
Ἔστι δὲ τὴν φύσιν τὸ αἷμα τόν τε χυμὸν ἔχον γλυκύν, ἐάν περ ὑγιὲς ᾖ, καὶ τὸ χρῶμα ἐρυθρόν· τὸ δὲ χεῖρον ἢ φύσει ἢ νόσῳ μελάντερον.
And blood is by nature sweet in taste, if it is healthy, and red in color; but that which is worse, either by nature or by disease, is darker.
Καὶ οὔτε λίαν παχὺ οὔτε λίαν λεπτὸν τὸ βέλτιστον, ἐὰν μὴ χεῖρον ᾖ διὰ φύσιν ἢ διὰ νόσον.
And the best blood is neither too thick nor too thin, unless it is worse through nature or through disease.
Καὶ ἐν μὲν τῷ ζῴῳ ὑγρὸν καὶ θερμὸν ἀεί, ἐξιὸν δὲ ἔξω πήγνυται πάντων πλὴν ἐλάφου καὶ προκὸς καὶ εἴ τι ἄλλο τοιαύτην ἔχει τὴν φύσιν· τὸ δ’ ἄλλο αἷμα πήγνυται, ἐὰν μὴ ἐξαιρεθῶσιν αἱ ἶνες.
And within the animal it is always fluid and warm, but when it goes outside, it coagulates in all animals except the deer and the roe-deer, and if there is any other animal that has such a nature; other blood coagulates, unless the fibers are removed.
Τάχιστα δὲ πήγνυται τὸ τοῦ ταύρου αἷμα πάντων.
And the blood of the bull coagulates the quickest of all.
Ἔστι δὲ τῶν ἐναίμων ταῦτα πολυαιμότερα τὰ καὶ ἐν αὑτοῖς καὶ ἔξω ζῳοτόκα [καὶ] τῶν ἐναίμων μὲν ᾠοτοκούντων δέ.
And among red-blooded animals, those that are viviparous both within themselves and externally are more full of blood than those red-blooded animals that are oviparous.
Τὰ δὲ εὖ ἔχοντα ἢ φύσει ἢ τῷ ὑγιαίνειν οὔτε πολὺ λίαν ἔχει, ὥσπερ τὰ πεπωκότα πόμα πρόσφατον, οὔτ’ ὀλίγον, ὥσπερ τὰ πίονα λίαν· τὰ γὰρ πίονα καθαρὸν μὲν ἔχει ὀλίγον δὲ τὸ αἷμα, καὶ γίνεται πιότερα γινόμενα ἀναιμότερα· ἄναιμον γὰρ τὸ πῖον.
And those that are in a good condition, either by nature or by being healthy, have neither too much blood, like those that have recently drunk a draft, nor too little, like those that are extremely fat; for fat animals have little and pure blood, and they become fatter as they become more bloodless; for fat is bloodless.
Καὶ τὸ μὲν πῖον ἄσηπτον, τὸ δ’ αἷμα καὶ τὰ ἔναιμα τάχιστα σήπεται, καὶ τούτων τὰ περὶ τὰ ὀστᾶ.
And while fat does not putrefy, blood and red-blooded parts putrefy very quickly, and of these, especially the parts around the bones.
Ἔχει δὲ λεπτότατον μὲν αἷμα καὶ καθαρώτατον ἄνθρωπος, παχύτατον δὲ καὶ μελάντατον τῶν ζῳοτόκων ταῦρος καὶ ὄνος.
And man has the thinnest and cleanest blood, but among viviparous animals, the bull and the ass have the thickest and darkest.
Καὶ ἐν τοῖς κάτω δὲ μορίοις ἢ ἐν τοῖς ἄνω παχύτερον τὸ αἷμα γίνεται καὶ μελάντερον.
And in the lower parts of the body, the blood becomes thicker and darker than in the upper parts.
Σφύζει δὲ τὸ αἷμα ἐν ταῖς φλεψὶν ἐν ἅπασι πάντῃ ἅμα τοῖς ζῴοις, καὶ ἔστι τῶν ὑγρῶν μόνον καθ’ ἅπαν τε τὸ σῶμα τοῖς ζῴοις καὶ ἀεί, ἕως ἂν ζῇ, τὸ αἷμα μόνον.
And the blood pulsates in the veins in all animals everywhere at the same time, and blood is the only fluid that exists throughout the entire body of animals and always, as long as they live.
Πρῶτον δὲ γίνεται τὸ αἷμα ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ τοῖς ζῴοις, καὶ πρὶν ὅλον διηρθρῶσθαι τὸ σῶμα.
And blood is formed first in the heart of animals, even before the body is entirely articulated.
Στερισκομένου δ’ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀφιεμένου ἔξω πλείονος μὲν ἐκθνήσκουσι, πολλοῦ δ’ ἄγαν ἀποθνήσκουσιν.
And when they are deprived of it and a larger quantity is let out, they faint, and when too much is let out, they die.
Ἐξυγραινομένου δὲ λίαν νοσοῦσιν· γίνεται γὰρ ἰχωροειδές, καὶ διορροῦται οὕτως ὥστε ἤδη τινὲς ἴδισαν αἱματώδη ἱδρῶτα.
And when it becomes too fluid, they fall ill; for it becomes like ichor, and turns so watery that some have already perspired a bloody sweat.
Καὶ ἐξιὸν ἐνίοις οὐ πήγνυται παντελῶς ἢ διωρισμένως καὶ χωρίς.
And in some, when it goes out, it does not coagulate at all, or only in a separate and disjointed manner.
Τοῖς δὲ καθεύδουσιν ἐν τοῖς ἐκτὸς μέρεσιν ἔλαττον γίνεται τὸ αἷμα, ὥστε καὶ κεντουμένων μὴ ῥεῖν ὁμοίως.
And in those who are asleep, the blood becomes less in the external parts, so that even when they are pricked, it does not flow in the same way.
Γίνεται δὲ πεττόμενον ἐξ ἰχῶρος μὲν αἷμα, ἐξ αἵματος δὲ πιμελή·
And by concoction, blood is formed from ichor, and soft fat from blood.
νενοσηκότος δ’ αἵματος αἱμορροῒς ἥ τ’ ἐν ταῖς ῥισὶ καὶ ἡ περὶ τὴν ἕδραν, καὶ ἰξία.
But when the blood is diseased, hemorrhoids arise both in the nose and around the anus, and varices.
Σηπόμενον δὲ γίνεται τὸ αἷμα ἐν τῷ σώματι πύον, ἐκ δὲ τοῦ πύου πῶρος.
And when blood putrefies within the body, it becomes pus, and from pus comes a stony concretion.
Τὸ δὲ τῶν θηλειῶν πρὸς τὸ τῶν ἀρρένων διαφέρει· παχύτερόν τε γὰρ καὶ μελάντερόν ἐστιν ὁμοίως ἐχόντων πρὸς ὑγίειαν καὶ ἡλικίαν ἐν τοῖς θήλεσιν, καὶ ἐπιπολῆς μὲν ἔλαττον ἐν τοῖς θήλεσιν, ἐντὸς δὲ πολυαιμότερον.
And the blood of females differs from that of males; for, when they are in a similar state of health and age, it is thicker and darker in females, and while it is less on the surface in females, they are more full of blood internally.
Μάλιστα δὲ καὶ τῶν θηλέων ζῴων γυνὴ πολύαιμον, καὶ τὰ καλούμενα καταμήνια γίνεται πλεῖστα τῶν ζῴων ἐν ταῖς γυναιξίν.
And of all female animals, woman is especially full of blood, and the so-called menses occur in women most abundantly among all animals.
Νενοσηκὸς δὲ τοῦτο τὸ αἷμα καλεῖται ῥοῦς.
And when this blood is diseased, it is called a discharge.
Τῶν δ’ ἄλλων τῶν νοσηματικῶν ἧττον μετέχουσιν αἱ γυναῖκες.
But women share less in other diseased conditions of this kind.
Ὀλίγαις δὲ γίνεται ἰξία καὶ αἱμορροῒς καὶ ἐκ ῥινῶν ῥύσις· ἐὰν δέ τι συμβαίνῃ τούτων, τὰ καταμήνια χείρω γίνεται.
And in few women do varices, hemorrhoids, or flow from the nose occur; and if any of these does happen, the menses become worse.
Διαφέρει δὲ καὶ κατὰ τὰς ἡλικίας πλήθει καὶ εἴδει τὸ αἷμα·
And blood differs also according to age, in quantity and in form.
ἐν μὲν γὰρ τοῖς πάμπαν νέοις ἰχωροειδές ἐστι καὶ πλεῖον, ἐν δὲ τοῖς γέρουσι παχὺ καὶ μέλαν καὶ ὀλίγον, ἐν ἀκμάζουσι δὲ μέσως·
For in those who are very young it is like ichor and more abundant, but in the old it is thick, dark, and scanty, and in those in their prime it is in a middle state.
καὶ πήγνυται ταχὺ τὸ τῶν γερόντων, κἂν ἐν τῷ σώματι ᾖ ἐπιπολῆς· τοῖς δὲ νέοις οὐ γίνεται τοῦτο.
And the blood of the old coagulates quickly, even if it is on the surface in the body; but in the young this does not happen.
Ἰχὼρ δ’ ἐστὶν ἄπεπτον αἷμα, ἢ τῷ μήπω πεπέφθαι ἢ τῷ διωρρῶσθαι.
And ichor is unconcocted blood, either because it has not yet been concocted, or because it has become watery.