author
Hugo Magnus
1842–1907
Best known for bringing medical history to life as well as advancing eye science, this German physician wrote in a way that connected scholarship with everyday curiosity. His work on superstition, blindness, and color perception still gives modern readers a vivid glimpse of medicine in transition.
1 Audiobook
Superstition in Medicine
by Hugo Magnus
About the author
Born in Neumarkt in Silesia in 1842 and later based in Breslau, he trained at the University of Breslau and went on to become an ophthalmologist, teacher, and historian of medicine.
Alongside his medical career, he wrote widely on the history and culture of healing. His books and lectures explored subjects such as blindness, color perception, and the role of superstition in medicine, showing a gift for explaining serious ideas in an accessible way.
He died in 1907. Today he is remembered not only for his clinical work in ophthalmology, but also for helping preserve the human story of medicine—how people understood illness, fear, and the body before modern science took hold.