Two Jewish Physicians in Early Modern Germany: Koppel (Jacob) Mehler (AKA Copilius Pictor) and his son Juda Coppillia Pictor

Abstract

Abstract The Mehler family was a distinguished German family from Bingen in the 17th and 18th centuries comprised of numerous rabbis and communal leaders. In this essay we draw attention to the physicians of the Mehler clan, a father and son in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. Though graduating just forty years apart, they represent the transition of the medical training of students of Ashkenaz (Poland, Germany, and France) from Italy to Germany. Prior to the mid seventeenth century, a young Jewish student longing to attend medical school had essentially one option, the University of Padua. By the early eighteenth-century German universities began to welcome Jewish students. Our father and son physicians straddle this period and reflect the transition of Jewish medical training from Italy to Germany. We have identified some remarkable archival material allowing us to provide also an illustrated history of their medical careers.