Focus: History of medicine - Part V Interactions - about "Traite inedit de l'acupuncture et du Moxa chez les Japonais" in J. B. Sarlandiere's "Memoires sur l'Electro-Puncture" (1825)

In 1825 Jean Baptiste Sarlandiere published the, Traite inedit de l'acupuncture et du Moxa chez les Japonais". It was the second translation of a Japanese paper on acupuncture and moxa to be distributed in Europe. According to the opinion of contemporaries as well as following generations, this text reflects the common tradition of Japanese and Chinese people. However, scrutiny reveals an eclectic work drawing on Chinese-Korean sources, which took its shape in a transitional period when the so called traditional Japanese medicine emancipated from its Chinese model and even picked up western elements. The history of origin and transmission of this text is an example of the versatility and dynamics of medical development in Japan while simultaneously demonstrating the difficulties of their reception in Europe.