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The Greek medical treatise from around 400 BC mentions donkey milk in more than ten chapters – mostly as a drink given after a laxative, often alternating with whey.
Historical account: The information provided here reflects the state of knowledge of its time. It is not scientifically proven, is not a recommendation, and cannot be applied today. Donkey milk is a food, not a medicine.
The source in brief
- Author: Hippocratic Corpus (anonymous author, Cnidian tradition)
- Work: De morbis II (On Diseases, Book 2)
- Passage: among others, chapters 13, 38, 40, 51, 55, 66–68, 70, 72, 74 (numbering according to Littré, Vol. VII)
- Time and place: around 400 BC · Ancient Greece
- Type of source: Ancient medical text
The original wording
καὶ ἢν μὴ σπληνώδης ἔῃ, ὄνου γάλα ἢ ὀῤῥὸν μετάπισον.
And if he is not suffering from the spleen, give him donkey milk or whey to drink afterwards.
Ancient Greek, Morb. II 38
Τοῦτον φάρμακον πιπίσκειν, καὶ ὀῤῥὸν καὶ γάλα ὄνου πινέτω·
Give this person a medicine to drink, and let him drink whey and donkey milk.
Ancient Greek, Morb. II 70
German translation: own, free translation by the DON DONKEY'S editorial team.
Background
The Hippocratic Corpus is a collection of around sixty Greek medical texts that are attributed to the physician Hippocrates of Cos, but come from various, mostly unknown authors of the late 5th and 4th centuries BC. The text "On Diseases II" (Latin De morbis II) is attributed in research to the so-called Cnidian tradition: It describes medical conditions one after another and assigns a treatment regimen to each.
The basis of this medicine was the theory of humors. Illness was considered a disturbance in the balance of the body's humors; the goal of many treatments was to "drain" excess humors upwards or downwards. Milk, whey, and cereal juices were classified in this thinking primarily according to their laxative or nourishing effects.
What the source reports
In "On Diseases II", donkey milk (γάλα ὄνου or ὄνειον γάλα) appears in more than ten chapters. The pattern is almost always the same: First, a medicine is given "downwards" (a laxative) or "upwards" (an emetic), then the patient is supposed to drink donkey milk or whey. The milk thus appears as part of the draining treatment, not as a standalone remedy.
Several times the author links the administration to conditions: In chapter 38 (a form of jaundice) and chapter 55, donkey milk should only be given if the patient is not "suffering from the spleen". If they are, the text in chapter 55 expressly advises against draining with cereal juices, milk, or whey.
Chapter 70 describes a precise sequence: first whey, then donkey milk, followed by a period without solid food, and only then light food. In chapter 51, cow's milk follows whey or donkey milk. The text therefore deliberately distinguishes between the types of milk.
Numbers and facts
- around 400 BC – approximate time of the text's creation
- > 10 – chapters in which donkey milk is mentioned
- Whey – common alternative to donkey milk in the text
- 1851 – publication year of Littré's Volume VII containing the text
Critical assessment
- What the source proves: The text shows that donkey milk was a fixed part of treatment regimens in Greek medicine around 400 BC. It proves a medical practice, not its effectiveness.
- Medical background: The prescriptions are based on the ancient theory of humors and the principle of draining. This understanding of illness is considered outdated today; the instructions cannot be applied to modern conditions.
- Authorship and transmission: The text does not come from Hippocrates himself, but from an anonymous medical school. The chapter numbering and wording follow Littré's 19th-century edition; newer editions may differ.
- Modern assessment: A health effect of donkey milk cannot be derived from this source. It is a medical-historical testimony and is not scientifically proven today.
Our assessment
For us, this text is an early, well-verifiable testimony that Greek physicians knew of donkey milk and deliberately distinguished it from other milk. We read it as cultural history – we expressly do not derive health promises from it.
Original quotes, all facts, and the complete assessment: Hippocratic Corpus: Donkey milk in De morbis II. Further sources and studies in the Research Archive.
Source: Greek text with French translation by É. Littré (remacle.org) · Compiled by the DON DONKEY'S editorial team, as of November 2026.
End of source summary. The source does not refer to DON DONKEY'S® or our products. Our donkey milk is a food.
