Here are five things that would have been a handy part of a medieval ‘first aid kit’ and that (incidentally) science is slowly proving can still be counted on to work in a pinch.
The Sick and The Dead: Medieval Concepts of Illness and Spinal Disability
November 21, 2015 By
There is an often erroneous idea that past societies were a) very sick, and b) didn’t care about the sick. This as I want to show is not the case. I will show examples of illness, but I also want to show that ideas of what is sick and what needs healing are not the same as our own.
Medical Lore in the Bestiaries
November 14, 2015 By
Some time in the first part of the Christian era, perhaps as early as the second century, there emerged a curious collection of zoological fables and religious moralizations called Physiologus.
Top 10 Medical Advances from the Middle Ages
November 8, 2015 By
Medieval medicine has often been portrayed as a time when physicians were ignorant and health care remained the stuff of superstitions and quackery. However, a closer look reveals that were many ways in which medical knowledge and care improved during the Middle Ages. Here are our top ten medical advances
The medical licensing examination and the world of the physician officers in Korea’s Joseon Dynasty
November 7, 2015 By
This article aims to describe the world of physician officers during the Joseon Dynasty.
Skriðuklaustur monastery: Medical Centre of Medieval East Iceland?
November 5, 2015 By
Skriðuklaustur monastery was the youngest of nine cloisters operated in Iceland during the Catholic period of the Middle Ages.
The first case of pagophagia: the Byzantine Emperor Theophilus
November 5, 2015 By
This paper describes a unique case of snow consumption by the Byzantine Emperor Theophilus (829-842 AD), who according to the narrations of the historians and chroniclers of those times was an ice eater, developing a pathologic craving for iced water and snow.
The Mad Norse King
November 4, 2015 By
What happens when the mental health of a medieval King of Norway declines and falls into madness? The story of Sigurðr the Crusader, who reigned for over 25 years, reveals a fascinating account of mental illness from the 12th century.
Expert examinations of wounds in the criminal court or justice in Cocentaina (Kingdom of Valencia) during the Late Middle Ages
November 4, 2015 By
Among the activities of doctors in the courts, one in particular stood out: the examination of wounds.
Nursing and Caring: An Historical Overview from Ancient Greek Tradition to Modern Times
November 4, 2015 By
Just like modern medicine, nursing also uses the Hippocratic Medical heritage as its base and therefore Hippocrates could be seen as a ‘ shared forefather’ for health care professionals.
Manifestations of psychiatric illness in texts from the medieval and Viking era
October 26, 2015 By
The medicine of medieval Europe was influenced above all by the Hippocratic and Galenic legacies, conveyed through the medical School of Salerno, albeit also to an extent embedded in demonological and supernatural beliefs and folklore customs.
Dental Health in Viking Age Icelanders
September 30, 2015 By
The purpose of the study was to evaluate dental health in Iceland 1000 years ago.
Marking the Face, Curing the Soul? Reading the Disfigurement of Women in the Later Middle Ages
September 29, 2015 By
This specific example, and a survey of later medieval texts suggests that the period between 1150 and 1500 was one of increasing attention to the facial features of both men and women within and outside clerical circles, driven partly by increased exposure of western Europeans to peoples of different physical appearance, and partly by the rediscovery of the ancient pseudo-science of physiognomy, which claimed to read character traits from facial features.
Performative Rituals for Conception and Childbirth in England, 900–1500
September 24, 2015 By
This study proposes that performative rituals—that is, verbal and physical acts that reiterate prior uses—enabled medieval women and men to negotiate the dangers and difficulties of conception and childbirth.
Demon Possession in Anglo‐Saxon and Early Modern England: Continuity and Evolution in Social Context
August 26, 2015 By
Sometime between around 687 and 700, a distraught father brought his raving son, in a wagon, to the island of Lindisfarne, where the holy relics of Saint Cuthbert were kept.
Investigating a Murder: The Case of the Justinianic Plague in Scythia Minor
August 9, 2015 By
The study beforehand applies a logical scheme of analysis over a possible presence of the Justinianic plague in the province of Scythia Minor.
Management of penile tumours during the Byzantine period
July 29, 2015 By
In the Byzantine period, surgery appeared to have been highly developed, as one may conclude from the surgical material included mainly in the works of Oribasius of Pergamus and Paul of Aegina.
Menstruation: curse or blessing?
July 27, 2015 By
Menstruation in our lifetime has been commonly called ‘The Curse’. Our sisters in the 16th century, however, welcomed this cleansing as a fertility sign from God, through the moon that determined the tides of all that flowed on the earth.
Medieval Studies and STEM
July 26, 2015 By
Here are 15 ways that medieval studies and STEM are working together.
The Achievements of Albucasis in the Field of Oral Surgery
July 3, 2015 By
In this research, we are going to study the Historical period where Albucasis lived, and the famous physicians there. Then we have to study the most important achievements of Albucasis in oral surgery
The Strange Mystery Of The King’s Head: Henry IV of France (1553-1610)
July 1, 2015 By
This paper reexamines the claims which were made in both the documentary and a subsequent book on the subject and, with respect, challenges the conclusions made by the investigators.
The Medieval Art of Medicine: A Poem
July 1, 2015 By
What was it like to be a physician in the Middle Ages? A poem by a 14th-century physician sheds a little light on the challenges of practicing medicine in his own time.
Single Genetic change created the medieval plague, researchers find
July 1, 2015 By
Yersinia pestis, the bacteria that caused Justinian’s Plague and the Black Death, was once only able to cause a mild gastrointestinal infection. However, researchers have found that a single genetic change to bacteria turned into one of the deadliest diseases in human history.
Caterina Sforza’s Experiments with Alchemy
June 12, 2015 By
She collected over four hundred alchemical, medicinal, and cosmetic recipes, and corresponded with other alchemical adepts about materials and laboratory techniques.
Dyes, Diets and Deodorants: Venetian Beauty Secrets Revealed
June 8, 2015 By
If you think it’s hard to keep up a beauty regime now, wait until you see what lengths the Venetians went to in order to be beautiful!
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