Las madres alejadas: Sorano y los cuidados del recién nacido en la Roma Imperial (s. II d.C.)

In this article, we propose to review the care of childbirth and the newborn in Imperial Rome through Sorano and his Gynaecia. In this treatise, the absence of the mother in the care of her child in favor of other female figures such as the midwife or, above all, the wet nurse, is striking for today’s public, immersed in a new model of neonatal care. The Greek physician seems intent on ‘distancing’ the mother from the newborn by placing it in the hands of these women, who take control of its care under the supervision of the pater familias. However, we cannot ignore the authority of the physician and his influence on paternal decision-making and maternal opinion. For this reason, our analysis fo- cuses on the role played by Sorano in the reception and diffusion of practices that distanced, at least physically, the baby from its mother.