αἱ δὲ φλέβες ἐν τῶι ἀνθρώπωι ὦδ’ ἔχουσιν· εἰσὶ δύο μέγισται· αὗται τείνουσι διὰ τῆς κοιλίας παρὰ τὴν νωτιαίαν ἄκανθαν, ἡ μὲν ἐπὶ δεξιά, ἡ δ’ἐπ’ ἀριστερά, εἰς τὰ σκέλη ἑκατέρα τὰ παρ’ ἑαυτῆι καὶ ἄνω εἰς τὴν κεφαλὴν παρὰ τὰς κλεῖδας διὰ τῶν σφαγῶν. ἀπὸ δὲ τούτων καθ’ (512 a) ἅπαν τὸ σῶμα φλέβες διατείνουσιν, ἀπὸ μὲν τῆς δεξιᾶς εἰς τὰ δεξιά, ἀπὸ δὲ τῆς ἀριστερᾶς εἰς τὰ ἀριστερά, μέτισται μὲν δύο εἰς τὴν καρδίαν περὶ αὐτὴν τὴν νωτιαίαν ἄκανθαν, ἕτεραι δ’ ὀλίγον ἀνωτέρω διὰ τῶν στηθῶν ὑπὸ τὴν μασχάλην εἰς ἑκατέραν τὴν χεῖρα τὴν παρ’ ἑαυτῆι· καὶ καλεῖται ἡ μὲν σπληνῖτις, ἡ δὲ ἡπατῖτις. σχίζεται δ’αὐτῶν ἄκρα ἑκατέρα, ἡ μὲν ἐπὶ τὸν μέγαν δάκτυλον, ἡ δ’ ἐπὶ τὸν ταρσόν, ἀπὸ δὲ τούτων λεπταὶ καὶ πολύοζοι ἐπὶ τὴν ἄλλην χεῖρα καὶ δακτύλους. ἕτεραι δὲ λεπτότεραι ἀπὸ τῶν πρώτων φλεβῶν τείνουσιν, ἀπὸ μὲν τῆς δεξιᾶς εἰς τὸ ἧπαρ, ἀπὸ δὲ τῆς ἀριστερᾶς εἰς τὸν σπλῆνα καὶ τοὺς νεφρούς. αἱ δὲ εἰς τὰ σκέλη τείνουσαι σχίζονται κατὰ τὴν πρόσφυσιν, καὶ διὰ παντὸς τοῦ μηροῦ τείνουσιν. ἡ δὲ μεγίστη αὐτῶν ὄπισθεν τείνει τοῦ μηροῦ καὶ ἐκφαίνεται παχεῖα· ἑτέρα δὲ εἴσω τοῦ μηροῦ μικρὸν ἧττον παχεῖα ἐκείνης. ἔπειτα παρὰ τὸ γόνυ τείνουσιν εἰς τὴν κνήμην τε καὶ τὸν πόδα καθάπερ καὶ εἰς τὰς χεῖρας. καὶ ἐπὶ τὸν ταρσὸν τοῦ ποδὸς καθήκουσι καὶ ἐντεῦθεν ἐπὶ τοὺς δακτύλους διατείνουσιν. σχίζονται δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τὴν κοιλίαν καὶ τὸ πλευρὸν πολλαὶ ἀπ’ αὐτῶν καὶ λεπταὶ φλέβες. αἱ δ’ εἰς τὴν κεφαλὴν τείνουσαι διὰ τῶν σφαγῶν φαίνονται ἐν τῶι αὐχένι μεγάλαι· ἀφ’ ἑκατέρας δ’ αὐτῶν, ἧι τελευτᾶι, σχίζονται εἰς τὴν κεφαλὴν πολλαί, αἱ μὲν ἐκ τῶν δεξιῶν εἰς τὰ ἀριστερά, αἱ δ’ ἐκ τῶν ἀριστερῶν εἰς τὰ δεξιά· τελευτῶσι δὲ παρὰ τὸ οὖς ἑκάτεραι. ἔστι δ’ ἑτέρα φλὲψ ἐν τῶι τραχήλωι παρὰ τὴν μεγάλην ἑκατέρωθεν, ἐλάττων ἐκείνης ὀλίγον, εἰς ἣν αἱ πλεῖσται ἐκ τῆς κεφαλῆς συνέχουσιν αὐτῆς· καὶ αὗται τείνουσι διὰ τῶν σφαγῶν εἴσω καὶ ἀπ’ αὐτῶν ἑκατέρας ὑπὸ τὴν ὠμοπλάτην τείνουσι καὶ εἰς τὰς χεῖρας. καὶ φαίνονται παρά τε τὴν σπληνῖτιν καὶ τὴν ἡπατῖτιν ἕτεραι ὀλίγον ἐλάττους, ἃς ἀποσχῶσιν ὅταν τι ὑπὸ τὸ δέρμα λυπῆι· ἂν δέ τι περὶ τὴν κοιλίαν, τὴν ἡπατῖτιν καὶ τὴν σπληνῖτιν. τείνουσι δὲ καὶ ὑπὸ τοὺς μαστοὺς ἀπὸ τούτων ἕτεραι. ἕτεραι δ’ εἰσὶν αἱ ἀπὸ ἑκατέρας τείνουσαι διὰ τοῦ νωτιαίου μυελοῦ εἰς τοὺς ὄρχεις λεπταί· ἕτεραι δ’ ὑπὸ τὸ δέρμα καὶ διὰ τῆς σαρκὸς τείνουσιν εἰς τοὺς νεφροὺς καὶ τελευτῶσιν εἰς τοὺς ὄρχεις τοῖς ἀνδράσι, ταῖς δὲ γυναιξὶν εἰς τὰς ὑστέρας. (αἱ δὲ φλέβες αἱ μὲν πρῶται ἐκ τῆς κοιλίας εὐρύτεραί εἰσιν, ἔπειτα λεπτότεραι γίγνονται, ἕως ἂν μεταβάλλωσιν ἐκ τῶν δεξιῶν εἰς τὰ ἀριστερὰ καὶ ἐκ τούτων εἰς τὰ δεξιά.) αὗται δὲ σπερματίτιδες καλοῦνται. τὸ δ’αῖμα τὸ μὲν παχύτατον ὑπὸ τῶν σαρκωδῶν ἐκπίνεται· ὑπερβάλλον δὲ εἰς τοὺς τόπους τούτους λεπτὸν καὶ θερμὸν καὶ ἀφρῶδες γίνεται.
The veins are thus placed in man. There are two very large ones, which extend through the stomach by the spine of the back, one to the right and the other to the left, each to the leg nearest itself, and upwards to the head by the collar-bone, and through the neck. From these great veins others extend through the whole of the body, from the right to the right side, and from the left to the left side. The largest are two from the heart, surrounding the spine of the back; and others, a little higher up, through the breasts under the arm-pits, each to the hand nearest itself; and the one is called the splenetic, the other the hepatic vein.
The extremity of these veins is divided, one branch goes to the thumb, and another to the wrist, and from these many small branches are extended upon each hand, and the fingers; and others, smaller still, branch off from these first veins, from the right side to the liver, from the left to the spleen and kidneys. The veins, which go to the legs, are divided near the junction, and extend through the whole thigh; but the largest of these extends to the back of the thigh, and appears thick; another, less thick, passes through the inside of the thigh, and afterwards veins extend by the knee to the leg and foot. As on the hands, they are distributed upon the tarsus of the foot, and from thence to the toes.
A number of small veins are distributed on the stomach and the lungs. Those that extend to the head, through the jugular region, appear large in the neck. From the extremity of each of these many veins are distributed upon the head, some on the right side to the left, others on the left side to the right, they all end near the ear. And there is a second vein upon the neck on each side, somewhat less than the other, to which the principal veins of the neck are united. These pass inwards, through the neck, and from each of them veins pass beneath the shoulder-blade and to the hands; and near the splenetic and hepatic veins there appear others a little less, which they divide when any disease attacks the skin; but the hepatic and splenetic veins are divided for any disease in the neighbourhood of the stomach.
Other veins pass from these, beneath the breasts; and there are other small ones, which proceed from each of these through the spinal marrow to the testicles, and others beneath the skin, through the flesh, reach the kidneys; in men they terminate upon the testicles, in women on the uterus. The first veins from the stomach are wider, and afterwards become smaller, until they pass over from the right to the left, and from the left to the right; these are called the spermatic veins. The thickest blood is beneath the flesh, but that which is in excess in these places becomes thin, and warm, and frothy.
Richard Cresswell · Aristotle’s History of Animals (1887 edition), III.2.4–7