Jadwiga's Notes & Comments

Hygiene CA

Wed, 14 May 2008 12:13:44 GMT

"’And that reminds me. Miss Lydgate’s History of Prosody was marked PRESS with her own hand this morning. I fled with it and seized on a student to take it down to the printers. I’m almost positive I heard a faint voice crying from the window about a footnote on page 97—but I pretended not to hear’" (Sayers, 1995 Harper paperback Gaudy Night, Ch 22, p. 492).

My Compleat Anachronist on Hygiene has had to be split into 2 volumes; Tonwen informs me that Vol. 1 goes to the printer TODAY!

Tooth stuff from Alexis of Piemont

Tue, 13 May 2008 14:00:34 GMT

Alessio, The Second part of the Secretes, p. 18-19.

For the stinkinge of the breath, and to make the teeth whyte.
Take a pound of skimmed Hony, halfe a pound of Aqua vite, three onces of Lignum aloe, two onces of gomme Arabick, Nuttemegges, Galingale, Cububes, Cinamome, Masticke, Cloves, Spic, and Lavander new, anna three drammes, tow drammes of Amber beaten, mix all this together, & still water of it in a limbeck, and this water will take away the stinking of the breath, whiten the teeth, and maintaine helth long.

A water to make cleane teeth.
Take salt Armoniac, and salt Gemma, three onces of eche one, an once & a halfe of alumen Sucharinum, and distill it, or temper it in two pound of water, the space of eight daies, & with this licour distilled or so tempered, you shal rubbe your teeth & they will be whyte.

Another water to whiten teeth,
Take a pound of salt well purged, and beaten, an once of Alumen Glaciale, & distill it in a limbeck, and mingle an once of the water, with an once of Plantaine water, and rubbe your teeth with the composition, and with cotten, and they will be white and cleane.

To take away the smell of Garlike, Leekes, or Onyons.
After that you have eaten Garlike, Leekes, or Onions, take the roote of Beete, & rost it under embers, and eate it, & you shall see the effect; or els eate a piece of the rote of Zeduaria, & you shal not smell at all, and this is easier to be done than with the roote of Beete.

Spic is probably spike, which may be spike lavender.
Aqua Vitae is distilled spirits
Lignum aloes is aloeswoood (Aquilaria species?)
I have no idea what 'anna' is there.
gomme Arabick is Gum Arabic; Acacia gum.
Salt armoniac shoule be Sal Ammoniac, ammonium chloride, NH4Cl
Salt gemma may be salgemma, halite, AKA natural salt.

Alexis of Piemont mothproofing

Mon, 12 May 2008 18:45:55 GMT

To make that the Mothes and Vermine shall not eate nor destroy e clothes and apparell.
Take Wormwoode, or Southerwoode, the leaves of a Cedar tree, & valerian, and laie them in your coffers or presses where your clothes be, or in the pleites of your garmentes, and you shall see that they wil not hurt them, bicause these leaves & herbes are bitter of tast, and the savour or smell is very stronge, which the vermine, doe abhoyre, and can not abyde.

p. 14.
Alessio. The Seconde Parte of the Secretes: London, 1563 (Norwood, NJ: Walter J. Johnson Inc, 1977). Vol 839, The English Experience.

[Draft] Conclusion for part I of the Hygiene CA

Fri, 09 May 2008 19:00:47 GMT

In the preceding pages, I have detailed examples of many personal hygiene practices used before 1601. Personal hygiene, clearly, was not completely unknown to our medieval and Renaissance forbears. Teeth and mouths were cleaned, bad breath combated, hands and faces washed, good manners in eating expected, and hair combed and dressed, at least some of the time by some people.

But, to slightly misquote Sherlock Holmes, it is always a mistake to theorize in excess of your facts. Were the modern student of medievalism to be transported back in time, their experiences with medieval hygiene would still be quite a shock to the system. People may have washed-- but not as often as moderns. People took care of their persons and tried not to offend with dirt -- but not the way we are used to. And as we know, the equipment and furniture of hygiene were rather different.

While the medieval laver or lavatory has appeared already, the 'usual domestic offices' which we look for in a modern lavatory will be covered in volume II. Readers interested in bathing, soap, and scents, and the disposal of human waste in the pre-modern period should look forward to it. Such hot and steamy-- not to mention odiferous -- topics yield more surprise as well as fascination.

How does that sound, folks?

the nature of truth

Thu, 08 May 2008 00:29:27 GMT

So, I'm re-reading Gaudy Night, by Sayers, and running into questions of 'the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth...'.

In Gaudy Night, there is a long discussion among the members of Shrewsbury scholars about the morality of suppressing a fact, and of the person who sees the fact suppressed and lets it go.

"Well, that's true, of course. Nothing could possibly excuse deliberate falsification."
"There's no sense in deliberate falsification, anyhow," said the Bursar. "What could anybody gain by it?"
"It has been done," said Miss Hillyard, "frequently. To get the better of an argument. Or out of ambition."
"Ambition to be what?" cried Miss Lydgate. "What satisfaction could one possibly get out of a reputation one knew one didn't deserve? It would be horrible."

Of course, there are many things where depending on how one states the facts, and which facts one states, one can make totally opposing arguments. Some of them have been touched on lightly by certain discussions-- even among the sane people who do believe in the Holocaust, for instance, there are wildly varying constructions of what it was about and even the way things happened, and why, and what we need to do to keep it from ever happening again.

Right now, though, I'm looking at something less fraught. One of the blogs I read, a post-peak-oil one (and the peak oil movement puzzles me specifically because of the issues and indicators they choose to focus on), just posted something about the end of the economy, etc. as we know it. The writer cites two other sites for some facts to bolster her argument. But... following her references, I find that they don't say exactly what she has made them say. Using your 'economic incentive" to 'pay utility bills' is not the same as 'paying past-due utility bills'. It may indeed be true that 50% of 'recent' homebuyers now have no or negative equity in their homes-- if you define 'recent' as 'in the last 3 years'. Did the writer do this on purpose? Or is this just the way she reads the news? Should I say something? Should I stop reading her blog? I don't know.

The same is true of other questions. Even in my own writing. I've recently written about medieval hygiene. Trying to explode the 'dirty' stereotype, I may well have overstated my case, and possibly even my evidence. But if I don't lay out the evidence as I know it, I'm complicit in the surpression of facts. If I don't argue the thesis of John Riddle in Eve's Herbs by saying "there's plenty of evidence that lots of this stuff isn't very effective, and that people really were obsessed with regular menstruation" I feel like I'm complicit in the misrepresentation of history. But am I actually supporting the suppression of truth? I don't know.

librarian grumble

Wed, 07 May 2008 20:04:18 GMT

*mumble mumble mumble*
just 'cos you can't find anything out on the open internet on it doesn't mean it's been erased from history.
That's what we *have* specialized resources for.
Just sayin'.

frugal feast shopping tips

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 00:47:34 GMT

Some things I came up with in response to a question on the SCA cooks list:

1. Shop at discount stores. You must know what stores are likely to have what before you start.

2. Plan 2 or more alternative seasonal vegtables so you can use the one which you find at the best price/quality

3. Bulk buy-- case prices can be significantly cheaper.

4. Resell/split overages from bulk buying, either to another group/event or to local cooks.

5. Make drink syrups instead of using drink mixes.

6. Peas and lentils are still inexpensive in relative terms. So are favas. Try dishes with these ingredients. If you have to offer a vegetarian and non-vegetarian version, it's still worth it.

7. Grains, especially specialty grains, are underused. Try barley, millet, barley groats, buckwheat etc. Use them with AT least a homemade vegetarian stock, or make one pot vegetarian and the rest meat, and serve your meat ON the meat stock grain.

8. Make stews rather than roasts. Leg quarters are the cheapest part of the chicken.

9. A Gallon can of pomace olive oil from the Middle Eastern or Hispanic grocery is still cheaper than 2 quarts from the regular grocery.

10. Skimp on the dessert. A dessert served buffet style is completely documentable for the end of our time period, and can be used to lure people away from tables.

11. Greens and salads are still inexpensive. Plan a half head of lettuce or equivalent for each table-- mixing lettuce, spinach and spring mix makes a great salad, and dressed with kosher salt, cheap red wine vinegar
and pomace oil, goes over really well.

Someone else posted:
> 1) Make your own broth from suitable feast ingredients-appropriate
> bone/skin/fat/peels.

I responded

Curiously, we use paste 'base' at home and for feasts. At $5.99-$7.99 a pint, and only a few spoonfuls needed to make the difference between veggies in water and soup, we find it saves us significant cost in making
soups and stews for lunches. A pint lasts us about a half year! We get Minor's Chicken and Beef base from B.J.'s; I need to find a source for Minor's ham flavor.

I collect ham bones for stock from events we've done and use it for soup. If you cook the ham for the dayboard ahead of time, you can cut it off the bone. Dump the bones in water in a crockpot overnight and you get amazing soup base for something like pea or lentil soup. I float some ham cubes or pork neck bones, which are very cheap, in the soup to make it clear it's a meat dish.

I'd suggest that making your own vegetable broth is really the only way to go for SCA purposes: i've not found a vegetable broth that completely avoids tomato, pepper, and/or potato.

Just sent this to Johanna for the next Tisane

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 16:29:56 GMT

Tell me what you all think.

Provoking women's courses?

One of the most contentious debates in the study of medieval and renaissance herbalism is over the function and use of 'emmenagogues,' that is, botanicals used to encourage menstruation. This is a separate category from abortifacents, which cause termination of pregnancy. Though most abortifacents are emmenagogues, not all emmenagogues are
abortifacents. (As an example, chamomile tea is cited as an emmenagogue by the comparatively modern Mrs. Grieve in her Modern Herbal, but modern science has not documented any abortifacent effects.)

Modern writers, such as John Riddle (Eve's Herbs), have collected much information about herbs used or described as useful as emmenagogues, or for expelling the dead child and/or assisting in expulsion of the placenta. Riddle, at least, appears to consider these to be documented evidence that safe, reliable contraception and abortion was available to our pre-modern foremothers, but was 'disguised'. I'm not so sure.

Medieval and renaissance male physicians were excessively, even morbidly, concerned with regulating menstruation. Delayed menstruation, they believed, could cause serious illness to women, as well as being a barrier to fertility. The womb could come loose and wander about the body, even settling in the upper chest and causing "suffocation" so that women fainted and even died from lack of air. Both misogynistic texts like Women's Secrets and the more sympathetic Trotula texts, as well as the Old English Seeknesse of Women consider regular menstrual periods a must, and include many remedies for delayed menstruation. Curiously, those manuscripts, mostly from Jewish physicians, that outright mention contraception and abortion, do not recommend the same emmenagogues, preferring instead semi-magical concoctions of exotic animal ingredients, toxins, and/or barrier methods.

Some of those remedies are, in fact, abortifacent but also considered highly toxic in general. Some can be hazardous to an at-risk pregnancy but helpful in menstruation due to stimulating uterine contractions. Others appear to be relatively harmless, such as dill or mustard taken internally.

As a result, we need to look closely at modern medical knowledge of any herb before deciding whether it was primarily used and/or successful to promote or ease menstruation, to control fertility, or to terminate pregnancy.

Resources

Barkai, Ron. A history of Jewish gynaecological texts in the Middle Ages. Boston : Brill, 1998.
Green, Monica. The Trotula : a medieval compendium of women's medicine. Philadelphia : University of Pennsylvania Press, 2001.
Hallaert, M. The "Sekenesse of wymmen" : a Middle English treatise on diseases in women (Yale Medical Library, Ms. 47 fols. 60r-71v).
Lemay, Helen R. Women's Secrets: A Translation of Pseudo-Albertus Magnus's De Secretis Mulierum with Commentaries. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 1992.
Riddle, John. Eve's Herbs: A history of contraception and abortion in the West. Cambridge, Mass : Harvard University Press, 1997.
Riddle, John M. "Oral Contraceptives and Early-Term Abortifacients during Classical Antiquity and the Middle Ages," Past and Present 132 (Aug., 1991), pp. 3-32.
Van De Walle, Etienne, and Elisha Renne, editors. Regulating Menstruation: Beliefs, Practices, Interpretations. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2001

On male-female discussions of -isms

Sun, 27 Apr 2008 15:36:39 GMT

and more provoked by the latest LJ tempest, I think...
but it's an interesting article that Naissa linked to:
Don't Be That Guy:
http://synecdochic.livejournal.com/214607.html

I especially love this quote:

When you fuck up (and everybody fucks up; I fuck up, you fuck up, we all fuck up), it's probably going to feel like getting hit in the face with a very large, very wet, very unhappy cat. There will be hissing and clawing and spitting and you may walk away bleeding. Please don't let this discourage you from trying. You're not expected to get it perfect all the time. The rage will be directed at you, but it's really a spontaneous explosion of the rage that comes from knowing that the world we live in is broken, and your accidental fuckup has been the latest manifestation of a more systemic brokenness. The women reacting probably don't hate you personally (unless they know you personally); they hate the systematic failure that your particular actions were exhibiting. I want you to understand the reasons for that rage. Because if you see that things are broken, and you see how badly it's hurting us, you'll want to help try to fix it.

Marag for the win again....

Sat, 26 Apr 2008 03:22:19 GMT

Two articles from a friend of marag;
"We are not like the other kids" and
"You're wearing the wrong duck on your head"

From a fandom perspective, but we'll all recognize 'em. Absolutely win.

american libraries direct is unusually juicy today

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 19:37:09 GMT

- Laptop inside a fake book-- what a good idea for officers at SCA events!
http://www.teleread.org/blog/2008/04/21/psst-a-laptop-lurks-inside-this-uk-students-book/

- easy ways to go green with your computer:
http://lifehacker.com/382319/easy-ways-to-go-green-with-your-computer
has anyone tried any of these? the GreenPrint, if it worked, could be an absolute blessing for reference staff and maybe even public printing...

-- Encyclopedia Britannica online free to "web publishers'?
http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/04/18/encyclopedia-britannica-now-free-for-bloggers/

Some things never change, do they?

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 19:19:29 GMT

From Reuters:
"Penis Theft Panic Hits City"
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSN2319603620080424?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews

From the Malleus Mallificarum

Whether Witches may work some Prestidigatory Illusion so that the Male Organ appears to be entirely removed and separate from the Body.
...There is no doubt that certain witches can do marvellous things with regard to male organs, for this agrees with what has been seen and heard by many, and with the general account of what has been known concerning that member through the senses of sight and touch. And as to how this thing is possible, it is to be said that it can be done in two ways, either actually and in fact, as the first arguments have said, or through some prestige or glamour. But when it is performed by witches, it is only a matter of glamour; although it is no illusion in the opinion of the sufferer. For his imagination can really and actually believe that something is not present, since by none of his exterior sense, such as sight or touch, can he perceive that it is present...

Hair dye Recipe

Wed, 23 Apr 2008 04:21:07 GMT

Recipe from The Secretes of Alexis of Piemont... Fol. 76

To make heare [hair] as yelow as golde
Take the vyne or the scrappynges of Rubarbe, & stepe it in white wyne, or in cleare lye; and after youhave washed your head with it, you shall weate [wet] your heares [hairs] with a sponge or some other cloth, and lette them drye by the fyre, or in the Sunne; after this weate [we] them and drye them agayne: for the oftener you dooe it, the fairer they wyll bee, without hurting your head anye thyng at all.

It's unclear whether 'clear lye' is an actual lye, and what strength it might be at. More tomorrow about the lyes; there's one set of Italian instructions that suggests making a lye for women to wash their bodies and privy parts! by boiling ash in water and then straining it; how strong a lye that might be, I don't know.

Copyright idiocy

Fri, 18 Apr 2008 14:23:19 GMT

The publishers and author of the Harry Potter books are suing for copyright violation by a book form of the Harry Potter Lexicon http://www.hp-lexicon.org/ by Mr. Vander Ark.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120847059496924513.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/film/news/e3ic5e17e9271fcb92ac43fafb4fddf4cef
http://books.guardian.co.uk/news/articles/0,,2273592,00.html

In http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hIGNIcztySvpGhm95iGPhNL7ov1AD901VBQO0:
Rowling claims the printed work:
"Rowling claims the book is nothing more than a rearrangement of her own material and told the judge it copied so much of her work that it amounted to plagiarism.

"I think it's atrocious. I think it's sloppy. I think there's very little research," she testified Monday. "This book constitutes wholesale theft of 17 years of my hard work."

Now, mind you, this allegedly is a printed version of the Harry Potter Lexicon that appears online, which doesn't actually reproduce more than a few scattered lines of her text. (She claims that she thought the online lexicon was ok, which is why she gave it an award, until the site added the "Please do not copy material from any version of the Lexicon." In other words, she thinks he should let people freely post as their own work material from the Lexicon-- the actual full TEXT of the lexicon, while she can sue him for writing explanations of her naming conventions.

What's this about? Oh yes. She's supposed to be writing (and her publishers publishing) an encyclopedia of Harry Potter herself. She hasn't done it yet, but her publishers are afraid that some tiny little segment of the purchasing world will buy this book instead of the Encyclopedia written by Rowling, if there ever is one, and so affect the sales of the Rowling book.

Do the words "That's kinda silly" mean anything to you? Most Rowling fans will buy and read anything she writes now. Libraries, too, will be forced to buy the Encyclopedia, if it ever appears. Nor will sales of the original series be impacted by a guide to the series, as far as I can imagine.

You see, its the publishers who own Rowling's copyrights for the previous books. Rowling hasn't figured out yet (because she probably has a contract with her publishers that handles this) that if the right of the "owner of copyright" to "prepare derivative works" is interpreted in the way her publishers want it to be, some unlucky authors who have sold their work might well be in the situation of being sued by their own publishers for writing things considered 'derivative' of items that they themselves have written, and sold...

This is the fair use clause of the law:
Limitations on exclusive rights:

Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright. In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the factors to be considered shall include —

(1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;

(2) the nature of the copyrighted work;

(3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and

(4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.

The fact that a work is unpublished shall not itself bar a finding of fair use if such finding is made upon consideration of all the above factors.

New, from the Journal of Archaeological Science

Thu, 17 Apr 2008 15:47:46 GMT

Articles that may be of interest to my readers:

Journal of Archaeological Science
Volume 35, Issue 6, Pages 1445-1764 (June 2008)

Methods for calculating brine evaporation rates during salt production . Pages 1453-1462
D. Glen Akridge

The coloured glass of Iulia Felix . Pages 1489-1501
A. Silvestri

Suspected bacterial disease in two archaeological horse skeletons from southern England: palaeopathological and biomolecular studies . Pages 1581-1590
R. Bendrey, G.M. Taylor, A.S. Bouwman and J.P. Cassidy

The production technology of Egyptian blue and green frits from second millennium BC Egypt and Mesopotamia . Pages 1591-1604
G.D. Hatton, A.J. Shortland and M.S. Tite

Environmental impacts around the time of Norse landnám in the Qorlortoq valley, Eastern Settlement, Greenland. Pages 1643-1657
J. Edward Schofield, Kevin J. Edwards and Charlie Christensen

The parry problem. Pages 1658-1666
Margaret A. Judd

The consilience of historical and isotopic approaches in reconstructing the medieval Mediterranean diet. Pages 1667-1672
M. Salamon, A. Coppa, M. McCormick, M. Rubini, R. Vargiu and N. Tuross

Everyone's got to have a specialty, I guess

Thu, 03 Apr 2008 19:32:03 GMT

Someone was referred to me because I know a bunch about historical use of herbs. She's doing a paper on the Egyptian herbals, and was splashing about in search of narrowing her topic.
So, I thought I'd post my most useful responses here, in case someone else is doing the same thing.
The text she's working with is
Lise Manniche, An Ancient Egyptian Herbal,* which is generally considered a nice solid summary.
I suggested that she check out:
Guido Majno, The healing hand : man and wound in the ancient world which anyone interested in pre-modern medicine will find enlightening if somewhat disgusting (hint: there is good pus and bad pus.)
R.J. Forbes, Studies in Ancient Technology a nine-volume set that includes all sorts of information on Greek, Roman, and Egyptian technologies from engineering to perfume.
There is also the terrible Wallis Budge and his Divine Origin of the Craft of the Herbalist but I'd only use that to suggest alleyways to pursue in more reputable sources.
If I had access to it, which I don't now, I'd also suggest Dioscordies, De Materia Medica. There's a English translation from 1655 reprinted under the title The Greek herbal of Dioscorides.

Another text her instructor thought would be helpful is:
John F. Nunn, Ancient Egyptian medicine

Another fascinating book, with lovely pictures and some text from parchments, is:
James P. Allen, The art of medicine in ancient Egypt.

Manniche also wrote Sacred Luxuries: Fragrance, Aromatherapy, and Cosmetics in Ancient Egypt which was well-recieved.

Dehydration, the sick, and Barley Water?!

Wed, 26 Mar 2008 18:52:15 GMT

Causaubon's Book linked to these two pages on the Rehydration project site:
Signs of dehydration: http://rehydrate.org/dehydration/index.html
Homemade Rehydration Solutions: http://rehydrate.org/solutions/homemade.htm

Apparently, including starches and sugars with the water helps it be absorbed.

Thus, apparently, the barley-water treatment for the ill. I've looked briefly for recipes for barley-water using Doc's MedievalCookery.com site (if you don't already use the Medieval Cookbook search, go bookmark it right now: http://www.medievalcookery.com/cgi-bin/booksearch.pl
Most of the recipes that did turn up-- in the Libre de Coch-- also called for chicken and almonds, prime sources of protein. But I know of other barley water recipes that call for barley, water, and salt/sugar...

Symbols encyclopedia online

Mon, 24 Mar 2008 18:16:09 GMT

http://www.symbols.com/

Found this in LII.org while looking for information on graffiti, but it would be handy for anyone who either needs to make up written symbols for a purpose or who is interested in the possible symbology of particular marks. Fascinating.

Armored Turnips poll

Mon, 24 Mar 2008 16:40:11 GMT

I'm thinking of putting together a list of "easy to make medieval dishes" and I thought I'd start where I started, with Armored Turnips. For those who aren't familiar with them, they are a sort of turnip au gratin, or as some people have put it, turnips as cheese substrate.

Platina book 8
Cut up turnips that have been either boiled or cooked under the ashes.
Likewise do the same with rich cheese, not too ripe. These should be
smaller morsels than the turnips, though. In a pan greased with butter
or liquamen, make a layer of cheese first, then a layer of turnips,
and so on, all the while pouring in spice and some butter, from
time to time. This dish is quickly cooked and should be eaten quickly, too.

View Poll: Armored Turnips Poll

Must print out and send to my mom

Wed, 19 Mar 2008 18:05:04 GMT

How to screw up, for the home preserver:
http://sharonastyk.com/2008/03/19/screwing-it-up-a-manual-for-the-new-home-preserver/

Only those who have done large scale food storage know how funny this is. (Yes, I added my own stuff in the comments.)

One for the win

Wed, 19 Mar 2008 17:44:47 GMT

Just came back from teaching an open session on "What's Google Good For?" covering some useful stuff from Google for academics (compared to what we pay for in library databases).

I had a good turnout-- 10 people; and I'm going to be rehashing it for the Writing Center tutors.
Here it is (in Google Presentations) if you are interested:

http://docs.google.com/EmbedSlideshow?docid=dc2f3xb4_67cngr5pdn

Squee!

Mon, 17 Mar 2008 21:21:09 GMT

Medieval apothecary garden found in Scotland-- thanks, Karen Larsdatter for posting this!

http://larsdatter.com/wordpress/?p=137
http://news.scotsman.com/scotland/39Chemists39-for-medieval-Scots-is.3884316.jp

More about the dig site:
http://archaeologynews.multiply.com/journal/item/231
http://www.btinternet.com/~ian.borthwick/LADAS/prog/01_soutra.html
http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/234047/getting_to_the_roots_of_soutras_old_cures/

If you're in England, or at Yale: apparently copies of the reports of the
Soutra Hospital Archaeoethnopharmacological Research Project
The ... report on researches into the medieval hospital at Soutra can be obtained...

Happy St. Gertrude's day!

Mon, 17 Mar 2008 17:05:34 GMT

Seems like it's a meme, now!
No, I don't wear green or orange today, 'cos I aint Irish.
(I don't identify as 'Christian', either but that doesn't bother me.)
My lineage is almost 1/2 Polish (with a Swedish great-great-great-grandmother in there somewhere), some French Canadian, some Welsh, and about 1/4 German.

About St. Gertrude of Nivelles-- she's a patroness of travellers and gardeners; you plant peas and potatoes on her feast day.
http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=3563
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06533c.htm

She's depicted with a mouse on her staff, and is sometimes considered the patron saint of cats.

To read Later

Thu, 13 Mar 2008 17:37:22 GMT

Recollections of Full Years, by Helen Herron Taft (Mrs. William Howard Taft):
http://books.google.com/books?id=q2AEAAAAYAAJ&dq=taft+mistress&source=gbs_summary_s&cad=0

The members of my family, and especially my children, are prone to indulgence in good-natured personalities and they like to make the most of my serious attitude toward my domestic responsibilities, saying that I make them three times as difficult as they need to be by a too positive insistence on my own methods...
p. 347, ch. XVII, "The White House"

Doing Herbalism in the SCA

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 01:49:20 GMT

Research and Re-creating herbalism in the Society for Creative Anachronism has its satisfactions. But it has some big, big frustrations, too.

To begin with, let's leave aside to some extent the alternative lifestylists, the people who dabble in medical herbalism, and want to drag their personal hobbyhorses into our re-creation. If you want to document for me the use of Echinacea before 1601, have at. I like to learn. Besides, I've written here before about the way the social and political environment surrounding modern herbalism shapes and interferes with the study of the use of herbs in history.

People in the SCA are fascinated to some extent by herbs, especially dangerous ones. They want you to teach classes on period poisons; they want to know about herbal contraceptives, about how to cure themselves with herbs and aromatherapy, etc. They are perfectly happy to smear creams on themselves, drink beers, or ask your advice about complex medical problems.

What they don't want you to do is use actual herbs. Especially on site.

Why?

An acquaintance of mine once said that we in the SCA would be very well prepared to survive the apocalyptic fall of civilization-- until our inhalers ran out.

Put it simply: the SCA is full of people with asthma and allergies and those who are vigilant on their behalfs (behalves?). Add to that the people who believe that their non-histamine reactions are serious/lifethreatening. These people and their advocates are vocal and active.

In a world where food service professionals put their plastic gloved hands first into the mushrooms, onions, peppers and lettuce in turn when making sub sandwiches, and where commercial enterprises routinely spray us with synthetic scents it's not unreasonable to be concerned about issues of allergens and contamination. In a world where some people believe that everything that is natural is safe, it's natural to be worried about unsafe things being advocated. Over time, we find out that even the most innocuous-seeming substances-- wheat, peanut butter, alcohol, even chlorinated water-- can cause our friends and relatives distress or even kill them. Things long considered inert or even beneficial may turn out, on investigation, to be dangerous.

Pre-modern medicine, even pre-modern cuisine, can be dangerous, filled with hazards that have long been removed in our society, often for good cause. We're very happy, for instance, that mercury is not part of our medicines, and lead isn't part of our cosmetics (though belladonna is sometimes used in medicine still).

And yet... the SCA, and SCAdian re-enactors, have the same hazards as any other part of modern life outside one's bedroom. If you are allergic to roses, or lavender, or mint, those items may well be brought into an environment you are in by someone who doesn't know that. Walking into the shower-house at a camping event means braving an ever-changing cocktail of airborne essential and fragrance oils. Attending an even where food is cooked and served means taking a chance on encountering someone cutting open an orange. Yes, we try to avoid killing our friends, just like your co-workers will rush out that bouquet of roses if you have a rose allergy. But modern life means contact with plants generally regarded as safe, whether you like it or not. Be safe, be sane, and be aware- someone near you might be using lavender oil to treat a cold sore, or drinking mint tea.

And when it comes to consuming re-created products-- no one should feed you a whole nutmeg or some rue. But if you have a counterindication to black pepper, you should know not to eat a teaspoonful of it, whether that be in a herbal breath remedy or a pepper-crusted steak. Every cook in the SCA should be ready to give out a list of the ingredients in their dishes-- and every person in the SCA with allergies and reactions should be aware of what to look for.