Lunchtime Talks
Pustules and Potions: What was medieval medicine really like?
Tuesday 4 April, 1-2pm
Djanogly Theatre, Lakeside Arts
Suitable for ages 14+. Please be aware that there will be images of disease and illness.
The perception is that medieval medicine was backward – but is this true? Dr Christina Lee explores what medieval healing and medicine looked like, from remedies and healing practices to the question of where people could seek help for their illnesses, and explores the changes to medicine over time.
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Elixirs and Stains: Exploring approaches to medieval medical manuscripts
Wednesday 19 April, 1-2pm
Djanogly Theatre, Lakeside Arts
Dr Erin Connelly explores technologies involving analysis of manuscript stains and the creation of medical ingredient networks using tools from complex network mathematics and digital humanities. The talk discusses these and their applications to modern questions of ethnopharmacology and antimicrobial efficacy.
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Medicine on the Move: The introduction of ingredients and information in the early medieval west
Wednesday 10 May, 1-2pm
Djanogly Theatre, Lakeside Arts
Dr Claire Burridge shares her research on early medieval medical recipes, highlighting the appearance of non-local ingredients that were unrecorded in classical medical writings. To what extent does the inclusion of exotic ingredients, such as ambergris and camphor, shed light on the movement of medical knowledge?
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Proteins from Print: Scientific evidence of usage of ingredients in historical medicinal recipes
Thursday 15 June, 1-2pm
Djanogly Gallery, Lakeside Arts
The emerging field of ‘biocodicology’, where biological data contained within old books and manuscripts is interrogated, offers opportunities to apply a molecular narrative to material culture. Professor Robert Layfield explores the possibility that protein residues, preserved for centuries on the surfaces of books and manuscripts containing historical medicinal recipes, may be alive with biological information that speaks to their handling and use.
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Other events
Guided walk: Health and disease in medieval Nottingham
Saturday 3 June, 10am-12noon
Nottingham City Centre
Explore places of health, illness and pollution in the pre-modern urban landscape with Dr Chris King. What was the standard of health and medicine? Were medieval towns really as dirty and disease-ridden as popular myth would have us believe?
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Family activity: Meet a medieval doctor!
Saturday 19 August, 1pm-3pm
Meeting room 1, Lakeside Arts
Find out about the medicines and charms used by early medieval English people by talking to Wulfhild, our 10th century “leech” or doctor. Come and see, touch and smell some of the plants and other natural materials used to treat a range of illnesses. Bloodletting is optional!
Free, just drop in
Suitable for all ages, children must be accompanied by an adult
Community Research Project
"Exploring consistency and continuity in the use of medicinal recipes into the early modern period (1500-1800)"
We are looking for volunteers to take part in a research project at Manuscripts and Special Collections which runs alongside our Plants and Prayers exhibition.
More information here (download PDF)