The Anatomy of Melancholy

Name: The Anatomy of Melancholy
Author: Robert Burton

1651 English with a close modern English rendering

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The Anatomy of MelancholyMember 4 Exercise of Body and Mind Regulated

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Facing Pages · Branch 486 of 1495

Member 4 Exercise of Body and Mind Regulated

Book Mode

1651 English

267–268

Of these labours, exercises and recreations, which are likewise included, some properly belong to the body, some to the mind, some more easie, some hard, some with delight, some without, some within doors, some naturall, some are artificiall. Amongst bodily exercises, Galen commends ludum parvæ pilæ, to play at ball, be it with the hand or racket, in Tennis-courts, or otherwise, it exerciseth each part of the body, and doth much good, so that they sweat not too much.

It was in great request of old amongst the Greeks, Romanes, Barbarians, mentioned by Homer, Herodotus, and Plinius. Some write, that Aganella a fair maid of Corcyra, was the inventor of it, for she presented the first ball that ever was made, to Nausica the daughter of king Alcinous, and taught her how to use it.

The ordinary sports which are used abroad, are Hawking, Hunting, hilares venandi labores, one calls them, because they recreate body and minde, another, the best exercise that is, by which alone many have been freed from all ferall diseases. Hegesippus lib. 1. cap. 37. relates of Herod, that he was eased of a grievous melancholy by that means. Plato 7. de leg. highly magnifies it, dividing it into three parts, * by Land, Water, Ayre.

Xenophon in Cyropæd. graces it with a great name, Deorum munus, the gift of the Gods, a Princely sport, which they have ever used, saith Langius, epist. 59. lib. 2. as well for health as pleasure, and do at this day, it being the sole almost and ordinary sport of our Noblemen in Europe, and elsewhere all over the World. Bohemus de mor. gent. lib. 3. cap. 12. stiles it therefore studium nobilium, communiter venantur, quod sibi solis licere contendunt, ’tis all their study, their exercise, ordinary business, all their talk:

and indeed some dote too much after it, they can do nothing else, discourse of naught else. Paulus Jovius descr. Brit. doth in some sort tax our English Nobility for it, for living in the country so much, and too frequent use of it, as if they had no other means but Hawking and Hunting to approve themselves Gentlemen with.

Hawking comes neer to Hunting, the one in the aire, as the other on the Earth, a sport as much affected as the other, by some preferred. It was never heard of amongst the Romans, invented some 1200 years since, and first mentioned by Firmicus lib. 5. cap. 8. The Greeke Emperours began it, and now nothing so frequent: he is no body, that in the season hath not a Hawke on his fist. A great Art, and many books written of it.

5746.BurtonPrinted page 267, h: “Camden in Staffordshire.” Camden, account of Staffordshire.

5747.BurtonPrinted page 267, i: “Fridevallius lib. 1. cap. 2. optima omnium exercitationum multi ab hac solummodo morbis liberati.” Fridevallius, book 1, chapter 2: the best of all exercises; many have been freed from diseases by this alone.

5748.BurtonPrinted page 267, k: “Iosephus Quercetanus dialect. polit. sect. 2. cap. 11. Inter omnia exercitia præstantiæ laudem meretur.” Josephus Quercetanus, dialect. polit., section 2, chapter 11: among all exercises it deserves praise for pre-eminence. The abbreviated work title is retained without a conjectural expansion.

5749.BurtonPrinted page 267, l: “Chyron in monte Pelio, præceptor heroum eos a morbis animi venationibus et puris cibis tuebatur. M. Tyrius.” Chiron, the heroes’ teacher on Mount Pelion, protected them from diseases of the mind through hunting and pure food. Maximus of Tyre. The note continues at the foot of the source page.

5752.BurtonPrinted page 267, m: “Nobilitas omnis fere urbes fastidit, castellis, & liberiore cœlo gaudet, generisque dignitatem una maxime venatione, & falconum aucupiis tuetur.” Almost all the nobility dislike cities, delight in castles and the freer open air, and maintain the dignity of their birth chiefly through hunting and falconry. Printed at the foot of the source page.

5754.BurtonPrinted page 268, n: “Ios. Scaliger comment. in Cir. in fol. 344. Salmuth 23 de Nov. repert. com. in Pancirol.” Joseph Scaliger, commentary on Cir., at page or folio 344; Salmuth, commentary on Panciroli, On New Discoveries, 23. Burton’s abbreviated locators are retained.

5755.BurtonPrinted page 268, †: “Demetrius Constantinop. de re accipitraria, liber a P. Gillio latinè redditus. Ælius. epist. Aquilæ Symachi & Theodotionis ad Ptolomeum, &c.” Demetrius of Constantinople, On Falconry, a book translated into Latin by Pierre Gilles. Ælius; letter of Aquila, Symmachus, and Theodotion to Ptolemy, and so forth. No body dagger is visible; the note is placed at “books written of it.” The latter bibliographical string remains unresolved.

The Anatomy of Melancholy: Member 4 Exercise of Body and Mind Regulated

p. 486

Of these labours and exercises, including recreations, some belong properly to the body, some to the mind; some are easier, some harder; some pleasurable, some not; some take place indoors; some are natural, some devised by art. Among bodily exercises, Galen recommends “the small-ball game”: playing ball with the hand or a racket, on a tennis court or elsewhere. It exercises every part of the body and does much good, provided the players do not sweat too much.

It was much in demand in ancient times among Greeks, Romans, and other peoples, and is mentioned by Homer, Herodotus, and Pliny. Some write that Aganella, a beautiful maiden of Corcyra, invented it: she presented the first ball ever made to Nausicaa, daughter of King Alcinous, and taught her how to use it.

The usual outdoor sports are hawking and hunting: “the cheerful labours of the chase,” as one writer calls them, because they refresh body and mind. Another calls hunting the best exercise there is, through which alone many have been freed from all deadly diseases. Hegesippus, in book 1, chapter 37, relates that Herod was relieved of severe melancholy by this means. Plato, in book 7 of the Laws, praises hunting highly, dividing it into three kinds: on land, in water, and in the air.

Xenophon, in the Education of Cyrus, honours it with a great name: “the gift of the gods”—the gift of the gods, a princely sport, which rulers have always practised for health as well as pleasure, says Langius in book 2, letter 59, and still do today. It is almost the sole and usual sport of our noblemen in Europe and elsewhere throughout the world. Boemus, On the Customs of Peoples, book 3, chapter 12, therefore calls it “the pursuit of nobles: they commonly hunt, and maintain that they alone are entitled to do so.” It is their whole study, exercise, ordinary business, and conversation.

Indeed, some are excessively infatuated with it: they can do nothing else and talk of nothing else. Paolo Giovio, in his Description of Britain, somewhat rebukes our English nobility for this: for living so much in the country and indulging so frequently in it, as though they had no means other than hawking and hunting to prove themselves gentlemen.

Hawking is close to hunting, the one taking place in the air, the other on earth; a sport as much loved as hunting, and preferred by some. It was unheard of among the Romans, invented some twelve hundred years ago, and first mentioned by Firmicus in book 5, chapter 8. The Greek emperors began it, and now nothing is more common: anyone without a hawk on his fist in the season is a nobody. It is an elaborate art, about which many books have been written.

5744.Galen wrote a separate treatise On Exercise with a Small Ball. Burton extends the reference into the ball games and racket tennis of his own period; the wording does not establish that Galen described modern tennis. The treatise’s identity is confirmed by the National Diet Library catalogue.

5745.Athenaeus, Deipnosophistae 1.14d, reports that Agallis of Corcyra attributed the invention of ball-playing to Nausicaa. Burton’s account makes “Aganella” the inventor and teacher instead. The original and modernization preserve his version; Corcyra is Corfu. No independent source for his altered anecdote has been established.

5750.Plato, Laws VII.823b–824a, distinguishes several kinds of hunting and recommends strenuous land hunting while disparaging fishing and bird-catching; Burton’s praise is broader. Pseudo-Hegesippus I.37 ends with Herod, distressed after Mariamne’s death and physically ill, retiring to woodland on medical advice and recovering bodily health and mental composure through hunting. This is checked in Wade Blocker’s English translation, not Burton’s Latin edition. It supports the reported episode, not a clinical claim. The unmatched asterisk after three parts remains visible.

5751.The divine origin of hunting and its gift to Chiron occur in Xenophon’s On Hunting 1.1, not in the Cyropaedia as Burton cites. Boemus’s Latin and Burton’s additional English amplification are both retained. Langius and Boemus’s particular passages remain to be collated.

5753.“Approve” here means demonstrate or establish. The Latin margin more neutrally describes a nobility that prefers castles and open air and maintains its standing by the chase; Burton’s body gives the observation a sharper satirical edge.

5756.“Hawking” is hunting with trained birds of prey. Burton’s twelve hundred years is relative to his historical setting, not to the present reader. His account of the sport’s origin and first literary notice is retained as his claim, not certified here. The dagger bibliography lacks a visible body anchor and contains an unresolved sequence of names.

About This Reading Edition

Robert Burton’s Anatomy ranges across medicine, philosophy, poetry, religion, and everyday life in its inquiry into melancholy. This complete parallel edition pairs the 1651 English text with a close modern English rendering, preserving the three Partitions, Democritus Junior’s address to the reader, verse, and the historical index.

Historical Text and Translation

The historical text follows the sixth edition, printed at Oxford for Henry Cripps in 1651, using the McGill University Library copy. The supplied edition documents missing printed pages 98–99 supplied from another 1651 copy at the Bavarian State Library. Historical folio labels and their irregularities remain visible; web reader numbers identify reflowed passages and do not claim to reproduce PDF pagination.

About Diotimos Editions

Diotimos Editions prepared the close modern English rendering and editorial matter. All 8,755 original and modern passage pairs remain aligned, with verse breaks, italics, continuations, and linked annotations preserved. Burton’s 6,781 historical notes retain their attribution; 6,895 editorial notes remain distinct. The introduction, Note on the Text, contextual lexicon, indexes, source documentation, and bibliography are included. The engraved frontispiece remains available in the original downloads.

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Burton’s historical text is in the public domain. The modern English rendering, introduction, notes, and editorial matter are © 2026 Diotimos Editions and appear with the site owner’s permission. The complete supplied PDF, EPUB, Word, and Markdown files remain available unchanged. The PDF and Word edition preserve the original parallel page layout.