The Dispensary – Samuel Garth – 1699 | Satirical Poem on English Apothecaries & Medicine

The Dispensary by Samuel Garth is a 1699 printing of mock-epic Restoration satire. This work captures the professional rivalry between London’s physicians and apothecaries during efforts to create a charitable dispensary at the Royal College of Physicians. Written in heroic couplets, Garth transforms the conflict into a poetic contest framed by mythological and classical figures.

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Dispensary: A Poem, in Six Canto’s
• Author(s): Samuel Garth
• Publisher: London: Printed and Sold by John Nutt
• Edition: Second Edition, 1699
• Format: (12mo), single volume
• Binding: Full leather
• Size:  7.25 in x 5 in (18.4 cm x 12.7 cm)
• Collation: [24], 94 pp
• Illustrations: Portrait frontispiece of the Royal College of Physicians
• Contents Include:
  • Prefatory text addressing the dispensary debate
  • Six cantos in heroic couplets
  • Allusions to gods, medicine, and civic rivalry
• Reference(s): Wing G 272

Condition:

Good. Binding worn at extremities, surface aged with moderate rubbing. Text block tight, pages clean with uniform toning. Frontispiece intact and crisp.

Why Collect This?

• Early example of Restoration-era literary satire
• Notable for its link between poetry and London medical history
• Fine representation of classical influence in English verse

Item Number: # 29479