Recently I stumbled on the SERNEC Collection database online.  This is the SouthEast Regional Network of Expertise and Collections, and you can use this system to look up plants in collections across the country with one search.  Some of the collections have preserved plants while others have photos.  You can search just one, a select few or all collections, and you can opt for scientific names, common names or family of plants.  Further, you can narrow the search down by geographical region as well.

Most of the locations that have preserved plants have more than one.  It is interesting to see the variation we get within a single item across the country.  Additionally, many of them include habitat notes with the items as well.  Just clicking on the scientific name will get you photos of the plant and the first 100 results from the database.

The link for the data base is HERE. 

You can see an example of the results for Broadleaf Plantain below.

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I decided on a male persona for my Forester work mostly because I like the clothing and I really like the idea of chausses because the chiggers in the summer here are just off the charts annoying.  I do plan to make 14th Century English women's clothing as well (mostly because I can get away with sandals that way at Pennsic, and because I have always loved that classic 'medieval' look).

But it is interesting that, in period, both roles that I am pursuing, Forester and Apothecary, could be held by women during the Middle Ages.  I had already read a fair bit about female apothecaries but the following article was posted to the Atlantian Forestry group on Face book discusses female Foresters in the 13th century in England.  This is key because it gave me better insight into how the position of Forester in Fee worked, and that my persona idea (being trained as an apothecary in London but returned to the family home to take over the Forester role after the plague wiped out my persona's father and older brother) is actually viable and not as convoluted as it sounds.

The article is HERE for those interested.  

This fall I harvested some dried mullein stalks to coat with flammables and attempt to use as torches.  I read in several "articles" online that mullein torches were used by the Romans.  Why the quotes?  Because not a one of those actually cite a viable source for that information.  I do not know whether it is legit or not (Roman period is not my research thing), but folklore also refers to these as "witch candles" so I thought I would give it a test regardless.  I will note that in On Simples, attributed to Dioscorides there is a reference to Mullein being used as lamp wicks and it is also called "lampwick", so that I will definitely be checking out in the future as well.

So last month I coated some of the stalks with wax.  Because of the cost of beeswax and my desire not to waste any, I chose not to fill a tall vessel and dip the stalks.  Rather, I melted a small portion and dipped the tip and just ladled the liquid wax over the rest and watched it soak in to the very dry material.  Modernly you can find mullein candles from neopagan vendors who very heavily coat them, truly making them candle-like in appearance.  They sell them as a less appropriative replacement for white sage for smudging (not a bad thing at all).

The initial test had a 3 inch flower head that gave me 5.5 minutes of well-lit burn time.  I used approximately 1.75 ounces of wax to coat the 4 stalks I had (3-4ish inches).

​Because wax likely had better uses than a quick burning torch in period, I decided to look at other viable options for this process and purchased some beef tallow and used up some expired olive oil and also vegetable (soybean) oil that was left over from frying schnitzel.

For this round I used 4 inch plants, all dressed in the same fashion (with the tip held in the oil and oil ladled down the stalk until it was well coated).  I labeled them and stood them up as I did before, lit the tops and timed them.

While the lengths of the flower heads on these were all similar, they were not exact down to the millimeter and I had no way to check for density, so some might have been heavier than others.  So this truly is not scientific, but still gave me a feel for how well the different fats performed.

In the image below, the wax is on the left, tallow, then olive oil and the vegetable oil on the far right.  The wax caught most readily and produced the most light for the duration of it's burn.  It is the only one that really acted as a "torch" for the entire duration.

The tallow performed well, but the bright light it started with settled down to something a bit better than a really good candle.  The two plant oils were more candle like until the last 5 minutes of their burn time.

At the end of ithe beeswax burned brightly for 18:42 (18 minutes, 42 seconds).  The tallow burned for 27:26 and the vegetable oil burned for 25:38.  The olive oil was burned for 21:01, but I also had to relight it at one point because it was very much struggling to really get going.

Also, I had a helper, because of course I did.  He feels that I finally have set the appropriate alter for his divine presence.

This is the next part of the preparations section from Mirfield's Breviarium Bartholomei, part 13, as found in Popular Medicine in the Thirteenth-Century England, by Tony Hunt.  This is my very rudimentary translation from Latin for the section on Oils.  Note, despite translation as "essential oils" at the start, these are essential oils as we think of them today.  Syrups, electuaries, pills, waters and powders are all covered in previous entries here.

​As with the previous translations, headers that are in parentheses are notes from Tony Hunt, while parentheses contained within the copy usually contain my own notes, whether it is clarification of a term or uncertainty of the translation.

(Plasters)

Of Plasters in General

Plaster is called from en, which is 'in', and plasters, 'form', that which is introduced over the form of the disease. Likewise, a plaster is called when many simple substances of different natures, such as powders, gums, fats, are boiled to perfection with wax, sap, and oil, and preserved in magdaleonibus (‘small cylindrical roll of plaster or other medical substance’ also ‘pill or tablet’, from Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary in English, 1375–1550). Afterwards it is stretched over the leather and applied to the place where it is needed, as the diaquilon (‘Plaster containing plant mucilages and juices, herbal oils, litharge, lanoleum, bird lime, gums, beeswax; attributed to Mesue’ Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary in English, 1375–1550) and the apostolicon (‘Apostles’ ointment containing c. 20 ingredients including litharge, colophony, beeswax, herbs, gums; used for wounds, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary in English, 1375–1550) and many other things. In other words, a plaster is called a hard composition made of different things and put together that can be mixed with the hands. But plaster and poultice are often used for something else. And note that plasters can be kept until they lose their smell.

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This is the next part of the preparations section from Mirfield's Breviarium Bartholomei, part 13, as found in Popular Medicine in the Thirteenth-Century England, by Tony Hunt.  This is my very rudimentary translation from Latin for the section on Ointments.  Syrups, electuaries, pills, waters, powders and oils are all covered in previous entries here.

​As with the previous translations, headers that are in parentheses are notes from Tony Hunt, while parentheses contained within the copy usually contain my own notes, whether it is clarification of a term or uncertainty of the translation.

I will greatly be expanding on this section later.  Here Mirfield mentions many different ointments and I have been sourcing the recipes for these from various sources to be shared later.  One such example is the the Agrippa ointment as described by Culpepper:

"Take of Briony roots two pounds, the roots of wild Cucumbers one pound, Squills half a pound, fresh English Orris roots, three ounces, the roots of male Fern, dwarf Elder, water Caltrops, or Aaron, of each two ounces, bruise them all, being fresh, and steep them six or seven days in four pounds of old oil, the whitest, not rank, then boil them and press them out, and in the oil melt fifteen ounces of white Wax, and make it into an ointment according to art.

It purges exceedingly, and is good to anoint the bellies of such as have dropsies, and if there be any humour or flegm in any part of the body that you know not how to remove (provided the part be not too tender) you may anoint it with this; but yet be not too busy with it, for I tell you plainly it is not very safe."

What recipes such as these really hammers home is the volume of ingredients that go into making of some of these items.  The medieval apothecaries were not crafting cures for a single person, but producing (or sourcing) in bulk the items they would need to sell.

As I have been harvesting wild plants for my own kit, I have noticed the level of work just to fill one small glass jar with dried, powdered plant matter, and then I consider how much my persona would have had on hand at a time and the level of effort involved (whether from the apothecary, the herb women, or another source) was staggering.  


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(Ointments)

On Ointments in General

There are some warm and some cold ointments. They are warm, such as dialtea (ointment made from marshmallow root), Agrippa, golden ointment, Arrogon ointment, marciaton (Anglo Normon dictionary lists this as an ointment for the bones/joints; another source mentions that it has wax, fats and 50 other ingredients), brown ointment (ointment for wounds), ointment for salty phlegm, and the like. But they are cold, such as popileon (ointment for wounds or burns of poplar leaves or buds, animal fat and leaves of narcotic plants such as henbane or poppy, the recipes vary, information from  Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary in English, 1375–1550, Norri), unguentum citrinum (yellow ointment, possibly involving citrus), unguentum album (white ointment - there are numerous variations of this recipe throughout history, often for removing blemishes, freckles or for sores), and the like.

And note that when about powders with oil, etc. if you want to make an ointment, then to one ounce of powder put four ounces of oil, one ounce of wax in summer, an ounce of seeds in winter (“yeme” clarified in the Middle English Dictionary online).

But if the ointment receives gums which are dissolved and not worn, the gums should not be counted in the aforesaid measure of weight, since they do not add to the thickness or to the softness. But if the ointment receives the fat of pig, chicken, goose, or other such things which are dissolved into an oily substance, then the dissolved fat must be counted as oil, and you must put the aforementioned amount of powders and wax.

(Preparation)

Now the method of making ointments from any herbs [if] you choose: first put the herbs in a pot or in a cauldron and let it be filled to the top with water. Then the mouth of the pot should be covered with a strong linen cloth and sealed with clay so that the smoke does not escape, and it should be placed on the fire until the water is consumed. And then let the pot be filled again with water and once again add the chopped herbs before boiling. Then put that herb with the whole decoction in a strong linen cloth and express the juice and use that juice in making ointments. And if you wish to reserve that decoction, make it with wax and reserve it in a box.

And note that all of them can be reduced to ointments by medicine, if they are cold, medicine with cold oils, if they are mixed hot with warm oils. And let a little wax be added, and let it bubble a little, and thus the ointment is made. This is how we work with perfumes, and especially hot ones. The ointment is placed in an egg shell and dissolved on the fire. And then, with that ointment, the patient's member should be exposed to the fire or to the sun. And then, after the anointing, some skin or something similar should be placed over the anointed member (membrum can also be member, limb organ or  “section”)  so that the power of the ointment is preserved.

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(Oils)

Of Oils in General

Essential oils can be used for many purposes. For oils are made sometimes from flowers, sometimes from seeds, sometimes from fruits, sometimes from trees, sometimes from roots, and sometimes from other things, as will be shown below.

(Flowers)

Oil is made from the flowers in this way: one pound of flowers is taken, three pounds of olive oil are taken. Grind the flowers a little, then mix well with the oil. And then the flowers float together in a glass vase and put it on the rim in the hot sun. And so they were exposed to the sun for nine days. And this may be done a second time or a third time if you wish. Then the strain is reserved for use.

It can also be done in another way: take one pound of flowers, three pounds of oil. Let it boil for a long time in a double boiler, then strain through a cloth. And with the thrown flowers, add others if you wish, and do as before.

(Fruit)

Oil is made from the fruits as follows: grind them and let them be ground for several days. Then add the water, kneaded with your hands, and the oil. And let it boil for a very long time in a double vessel. And strain through a cloth. When it has cooled, collect what has been left behind.

(Seeds)

Oil is made from the seeds in this way: take a mustard seed or something else and put it in a yellow vessel and put a cloth over it and dig it in the moist earth and leave it there for nine days. Then grind it vigorously and put it in the chapel and strain it through a sieve and collect what comes out and reserve it.

But oil is made in a different way from the seeds and berries: reduce it to powder and make it boil in wine and strain. And after straining, add one pound of oil. And let it boil for the consumption of the wine and reserve it.

(Herbs)

Likewise, oil can be made from herbs and roots in this way: let common oil be heated and the herbs and roots are left there for at least a week. And let the grass and the roots be moved every day. Then bring the whole thing to a boil in a double boiler. And strain and reserve for use.

(Woods)

In general, oils are made from wood, so the wood is divided into very small pieces and placed in a pot with a hole in the bottom. And a covering of reborn earth, that is, clay, is placed on top of it, and it is sealed with paste so that the smoke does not escape. And let there be a trench in the ground, in which another unperforated pot is placed. And let a fire be made around the sides of the upper pot, and what will burn from the wood will fall into the lower pot, and it will be reserved for use.

(Roots & Herbs)

Oils can be made from roots and herbs: they are boiled in water and wine with a little shaking, and after it is seen that their virtue is a liquid, it is worshiped (prescribed?). And the oil is added to the filter. And so the whole boils until it is consumed, and the oil is reserved for use. Or boil the oil with the juice of roots or herbs until the juice is consumed. Then it is cultivated and reserved for use.

(Spices)

Similarly, we can boil any pulverized species in wine or water and after boiling it is cultivated. And the filter is boiled with added oil until it is consumed, filtered and reserved for use.

(Powders)

Likewise, we boil the powders mixed together with wine and oil, and when the wine is boiled and consumed, we strain it, and what comes out through the straining will be oil.

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This is part three and four of the Preparation of Compound Medicines.  For more background and to see Part 1 - Syrups, please check out the post HERE or part 2 on electuaries HERE, part 3 - Pills can be found HERE. This is my (rudimentary) translation from Latin the Pills section of John Mirfield's Breviarium Bartholomei, part 13, as found in Popular Medicine in the Thirteenth-Century England, by Tony Hunt.

​As with the previous translation of Syrups, headers that are in parentheses are notes from Tony Hunt, while parentheses contained within the copy usually contain my own notes, whether it is clarification of a term or uncertainty of the translation.

(Powders)

Of Powders in General

First of all, it must be understood that any medicine that is prepared in the manner of an electuary or in pills can be given as a powder, but if necessary, scammony (‘scamonia’, the plant scammony which is a purgative - need better translation for this as it comes up several times) is added in the proper portion. Some, however, are so disgusted with ready-made medicines that they do not want to take them in any way, to whom we give a powder that is strong for this purpose and perhaps a laxative, and we offer them unwary at the beginning of the meal in some food or drink. And when they have received the laxative powder, they must abstain from food, lest the power of the medicine be suffocated by an excessive quantity of it. And note that medicine given in powder is more effective against the vices of parts removed from the stomach than pills or suppositories. For dust penetrates deeply by its subtlety. Especially diuretics and the like need a fine powdering, so that they penetrate more quickly to the members. Therefore, whatever medicine has reference to the remote parts must be finely powdered; but, as some say, laxative medicine quickly loses its power when powdered. Wherefore it is better that they be made with honey or sugar, or at least with a juice of their own competence, to be bound together and formed into pieces. And when you wish to use them, they should be diluted with some liquid of sufficient strength and taken by mouth. But the laxative powder should be given to those who have a fever with water, not to those who have a fever with wine. For dust quickly loses its power because of its fineness. Therefore, at least the laxative powder should not be used for a fortnight or a month longer unless it is prepared as aforesaid. Moreover, when a bird or other animal is to be pulverized, they are first placed in a crude pot with a lid and lined with clay in a boiling oven - not to burn them, but to dry them so that they can be pulverized.

(Waters)

Of Waters in General

Against different diseases, they find different medicinal waters, some from leaves, some from flowers, some from roots, and from many other things in different ways, as will be evident from the inside, about some for example. And you must know that all herbal waters have the same virtues as the herb from which they are extracted.

(Preparation)

But when you want to draw water from flowers or leaves or the like, they are collected in the morning and thrown away with sticks, cut a little and are broken a little in a mortar. And from there the lower vessel of the distiller is filled up to the middle and covered with another part of the distiller. And then those vessels are bound well round the lip with clay, and then they are placed on an earthen furnace which has a narrow opening. And then the coals are placed without smoke, and the water drips through the mouth of the dropper, which is received in a glass vial, and reserved for use.

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