GALYEN. Galenos or Galen, A.D. 129-199, was born at Pergamum and went to Rome in 162. He became court physician in the court of Marcus Aurelius and grew famous as one of the most distinguished doctors in antiquity. The complete edition of his works fills twenty-two volumes on medicine, on anatomy, and on physiology. Merton College Library owned two copies of his works between 1360 and 1385.

Galyen is among the Doctor's authorities, Gen Prol 431. Not even Galyen, the famous physician, can cure the Man in Black, BD 571. Chaucer's lines:

Ne hele me may no phisicien
Noght Ypocras, ne Galyen;

directly echo RR 15959-15960:

Pas Ypocras ne Galien
Tout fussent bon fisicien.

The reference to Galien in ParsT 831 has not been traced.

Galyen, the ME variant of OF Galien, resembles Dante's Galieno (Inf IV.143) and appears in final rhyming position, Gen Prol 431; BD 571.