Prepatellar bursitis

Gaspar de Crayer
1584, Antwerp–1669, Ghent, Belgium

The meeting between the classical Greek ruler Alexander the Great and the Greek philosopher Diogenes was a popular subject in Italian and Flemish Baroque painting.
Crayer was a pupil of Rubens and was also influenced by van Dyck.

♦ Alexander the Great and Diogenes (1620) ♦

When Alexander the Great, ruler of the world, asked the philosopher Diogenes what he wanted most, he replied: ‘Move out of my sunlight’.
The contrast between the handsome, young hero and the poor old man, whose life is an example of asceticism, is exploited by the painter in his composition and use of colors.
The message of this painting is the meaninglessness of earthly power compared to ethical principles.

♦ Diagnosis
Key symptoms: Localized swelling on the left knee.
Secondary symptoms: Old philosopher, asceticism, plant-based diet
Clinical diagnosis: Prepatellar bursitis (housekeeper's knee, priest's knee)

♦ Definition: Prepatellar bursitis
Inflammation of the bursa at the front of the knee joint.

♦ Discussion
Prepatellar bursitis, a swelling between the skin and the lower kneecap or the hamstring, used to be the result of frequent kneeling and is now mainly caused by contact sports.
The pain is usually bearable, unless direct pressure is applied to the swollen area.

► Alexander the Great, king of Macedonia, born in 356 BC, was educated by Aristotle.
He conquered Greece in 336, Tyre and Egypt in 332. He married the Persian princess Roxane.
Later, he conquered India after crossing the Indus River (327-325) and died in Babylon in 323 BC.
In 301 BC, his empire was divided into smaller parts, including Macedonia, Syria, and Egypt.

► Diogenes, born on the Black Sea coast before 400 BC, arrived in Greece in 340 as a political exile, where he became a renowned philosopher in the school of Socrates.
He represented the cynical school of thought, which was based on the principles of simplicity, austerity, and freedom from conventionalism.
Diogenes died in Corinth in 320 BC.

Source: Jan Dequeker
The artist and the doctor look at paintings

Jan Dequeker
The artist and the doctor look at paintings

Photos
wikipedia.org
wikiquote.org