When I was a kid I loved a book called "The Midwife's Apprentice," about a girl in medieval England who trains to become a midwife. The author researched a lot of medieval medicine - prayers and talismans and rituals were always part of the process. I remember a scene where the midwife yells up the birth canal to demand the child come out in the name of Christ, like she's exorcising a demon.
This post makes me curious to learn more! I'd love to see some of the recipes.
When I was a kid I loved a book called "The Midwife's Apprentice," about a girl in medieval England who trains to become a midwife. The author researched a lot of medieval medicine - prayers and talismans and rituals were always part of the process. I remember a scene where the midwife yells up the birth canal to demand the child come out in the name of Christ, like she's exorcising a demon.
This post makes me curious to learn more! I'd love to see some of the recipes.
Many recipes appear in the digitized records using the links in the article. But hard to find ground mummy today.
Seriously, an ingredient? How very strange. You really looked carefully.
Newt eyes are also not off the shelf. The chemists of old must have many bottles of these fine ingredients.
Fascinating stuff. I'd love to peruse these medieval medical recipes. I wonder how many of these were effective in part or in full.