The historical atlas of the Italian professions: the involvement of the Veterinary Medicine.

The University of Bologna is developing a project on the historical evolution of the free professions relevant for the Italian history (accountant, agronomist, architect, engineer, lawyer, notary, pharmacist, physician, veterinarian, etc), providing a new model for this field of research. Qualitative and quantitative data from national and local sources (initially with special reference to Bologna and the Emilia-Romagna region) will be analysed using mainly the cartographic and the iconographic methods. The multidisciplinary elaboration is expected to provide an overview of the evolution (cultural, technical, of gender) of the professions and of their relationship with social, political and economic developments, and to produce: a) an historical comparative atlas of the professions in Italy from the Middle ages to the present times; b) an iconography of the professions (arts, photography, cinematography, television); c) a photographic exhibition. Special items considered for Veterinary Medicine will be the origin and the evolution of the profession and of the professional education, the Veterinary Schools and literature, the consequences of animal diseases and epidemics. Two main patterns, often strictly connected, may be perceived: the field practice (for long time very close to farriery) and the one related to human medicine which led to the belonging of public veterinary services to the health administration and to the present denomination of “Veterinary Public Health”.