Hippocrates' plane tree

Hippocrates' plane tree 2003

The plane tree of Hippocrates ( Greek Πλάτανος του Ιπποκράτη ) is an oriental plane tree ( Platanus orientalis L.) on the Platia Platanou ( Πλατεία Πλατάνου ) in the city of Kos on the Greek Dodecanese island of Kos . The tree is named after the ancient doctor Hippocrates of Kos .

description

The trunk diameter at the base is 4.70 m, the circumference is 10.5 m and the crown diameter is around 18 m. The trunk is completely hollowed out due to insect and fungus infestation. The sapwood has a maximum thickness of 10–15 cm.

meaning

The doctor Hippocrates of Kos is said to have planted the plane tree and taught his students the art of medicine under the tree. Accordingly, it would have an age of more than 2,400 years. The St. Paul to 57 n. Chr. For a subsequent delivery of the plane, the Christian have taught.

Today's tree is a maximum of 500 years old due to its life expectancy. It is therefore assumed that it is an offshoot of the original tree. A correct age determination is no longer possible due to the lack of heartwood .

As the decay of the tree intensified and the spreading branches threatened to break off due to their own weight or the wind, the forest administration proposed protective measures for preservation in 1975. Since then, the protruding branches have been partially held by a scaffold.

By decree (180324/6701/30 Αυγ.1985 (ΦΕΚ 589 T.Β 2-10-85)) the plane tree was placed under protection in 1985 as a natural monument by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development.

Trivia

Several branches of the plane tree have been planted around the world.

When the Greeks 'struggle for freedom (1821–1829), which also found supporters on Kos, failed, dozens of people are said to have been hung up in front of Hippocrates' plane tree as a deterrent.

Ottoman well house, the roofing was destroyed in the 2017 earthquake
Trunk of the Hippocrates plane tree

literature

Kos, the island & the city . Mediterraneo Editiones, 2005, ISBN 960-8227-51-8 .

Web links

Πλάτανος Ιπποκράτη , Greek

36.894775 27.290937Coordinates: 36 ° 53 ′ 41.2 ″ N , 27 ° 17 ′ 27.4 ″ E

Individual evidence

↑ Πλάτανος Ιπποκράτη , website: kos.gr.
^ Ellen Katja Jaeckel: Kos , Merian live, ISBN 978-3-8342-1989-3 , p. 46.
↑ Ντέλλας, Γιώργος: Δωδεκάνησος, τέυχος Ζ., Δωδεκάνησα: Ιερά Μητρόπολις Ρόδου, 2012, p. 45, ISSN 1792-0507.

[1] Πλάτανος Ιπποκράτη , website: kos.gr.

[2] Ellen Katja Jaeckel: Kos , Merian live, ISBN 978-3-8342-1989-3 , p. 46.

[3] Ντέλλας, Γιώργος: Δωδεκάνησος, τέυχος Ζ., Δωδεκάνησα: Ιερά Μητρόπολις Ρόδου, 2012, p. 45, ISSN 1792-0507.