[Hernia surgeons of Scutari, Istanbul].

The Ottoman capital was constituted of four judicial regions (mevleviyet, molla kursusu): Istanbul (within the citywalls), Galata (the Roumelian side of Bosphorous from Kasimpasha to Rumelifeneri), Eyup (western bank of the Golden Horn and Scutari. Since one judicial court did not suffice for this spacious area, each region was subdivided into districts (niyabets) called Mamure and Cedide where a large collection of records registered chronologically were reserved at the law court archives. I have studied 168 judicial records of Scutari. Among them, a document with the record number of 139, attracted my attention because of its interesting content. In view of this document of the 17th century, a physician could not be blamed or legally responsible for a risky operation if the patient had given his consent in advance. In this case, the patient was a man called Yanni from Agriboz Island. He was suffering from inguinal hernia. The healer was a woman called Saliha Sultan binti Kupeli, a Coptic, who practiced as a surgeon. Since some risk is inherent in medical operations, a contract was made between the patient and the surgeon, while the consent was given in case of any legal actions for damages. Therefore the surgeon was in need of a guarantee which was to be stated in the contract and confirmed by the judge (kadi). This article gives examples of this kind of case.