Faith and Science
Until well into the 17th century, sovereigns, theologians and doctors agreed that the primary cause of epidemics was the wrath of God. The veneration of the plague saints Rochus and Sebastian demonstrate the religious dimension of the perception of epidemics.
Conduct in times of plague
The woodcut shows the plague saint Rochus of Montpellier. The depiction of the angel spreading ointment on the plague boil refers to the legendary care of the sick pilgrim in a hut.
The plague mandate issued in 1520 is one of the earliest surviving laws of the Bamberg canons in the field of disease control.
Infirmaries for lepers
People suffering from contagious and incurable diseases often faced stigmatization. Lepers had to use a rattle to warn healthy people not to approach them. Stories of the misdeeds of lepers testify to this prejudice.
In a special sickness exhibition, as shown in stylized form in a woodcut illustration from Gerßdorff's medical work, patients would be diagnosed with leprosy. It was demonstrated how the examination of infected persons should be carried out.
The function of pharmacies
The function of pharmacies in the early modern period was to distribute medicines prescribed by doctors. They were essential for pre-modern medicine and were therefore subject to regulation. This text emphasizes the respectability of pharmacy as a profession.
A book about the art of distilling by Hieronymus Brunschwig provides a highly stylized insight into a pharmacy at the beginning of the modern era.
Die Einhorn-Apotheke (Grüner Markt 1) (1886) by Heinrich RulandStaatsbibliothek Bamberg
Healing in the sign of the unicorn
At the end of the 17th century, the pharmacist Georg Franz Boxberger opened the third pharmacy in Bamberg at what is now Grüner Markt 3. It was referred to as the "Einhorn-Apotheke" after its house emblem.
The chronostichon of the house emblem can be translated as: "Here the sick who cleanse themselves with the unicorn are sure to be healed. Come, a pharmacopoeia is ready here." The spell refers to the healing powers attributed to the unicorn's horn.
Guidelines for Pharmacists
The importance of pharmacies in early modern cities is also reflected in their regulations. An example of this is the Newe Apotecker Order issued in Bamberg in 1584.
In this, Prince Bishop Ernst von Mengersdorf laid down guidelines for the professional activities of pharmacists and the manufacture of medicinal products. In addition, the prices for medicinal substances and remedies were fixed.
De pestilentia (1608?) by Raymund MindererStaatsbibliothek Bamberg
Medical policy in the 17th century
The reign of Bamberg's Prince Bishop Johann Philipp von Gebsattel (1599-1609) was marked by repeated epidemics that required government intervention.
Gebsattel ordered measures for prevention, therapy and also to protect the salvation of his subjects.
A barber was hired for the poor, who served as a free point of contact and was supposed to ensure that medicines were distributed to all subjects.
From a medical point of view, the therapy proposals in Gebsattel's epidemic mandates were shaped by traditional humoral pathology and miasm theory, whose disease concepts were based on an imbalance in bodily fluids or on the assumption of harmful vapors.
A measure against the spread of diseases that was already considered sensible in the early modern period was far-reaching contact restrictions, as issued by Prince Bishop Gebsattel in 1599.
Advice from a prince-bishop's personal physician
The flyer, written by Bamberg's personal physician Henning Scheunemann, provides information about physical signs of illness and advertises inexpensive therapies and medicines.
This was aimed at a wide audience, especially for poorer subjects, but also raises the question of practical implementation in a largely illiterate population. Scheunemann's recommendations might have been more useful for the circle of healers.
Plague writings of a prince-bishop's personal physician
The knowledge that the spread of diseases can be traced back to poor hygiene or contagion was embedded in a religious worldview in which epidemics were interpreted as punishments sent by God for the sins of man.
Medical knowledge for laypeople
The Bamberg court physician Johannes Puollamer published a document that was intended to educate laypeople about the dangers of various contagious diseases and tried to give them options for prevention and treatment.
Puollamer often referred to the ancient physicians Hippocrates and Galen, who were recognized as medical authorities in the early modern period.
Controversies regarding Paracelsus
A prescription printed in 1608 shows the controversies surrounding Paracelsism, who opposed classical humoral pathology, also attracted attention in Bamberg. The title refers to the controversial doctor.
Porträt des Paracelsus (1567)Staatsbibliothek Bamberg
Influenced by Paracelsism, the court physician Henning Scheunemann published a plague publication in 1608 in which the disease was described as Morbus Mercurialis Contagiosus, based on Paracelsus' three-element theory.
The Bamberg doctor Sigismund Schnitzer and Andreas Libavius were critical of the teachings of Paracelsus, but were interested in empirical methods. Schnitzer's correspondence on medical questions was published in 1626 under the title Cista medica.
The role of the executioner
The illustration of the Bamberg Code of Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure from 1580 illustrates the role of the executioner in the penal system. In addition, executioners also practiced as healers; their medical services were in high demand among the population.
The writing of the Bamberg doctor Otto Philipp Virdung von Hartung promoted a public anatomical dissection of an executed man. To this end, it extolled the usefulness of anatomy for various sciences.
A wandering ophthalmologist
In the early modern period, eye operations such as cataracts were usually not performed by doctors, but by traveling oculists. Due to their mobility, they had to repeatedly draw attention to their services.
An example of this is the English oculist John Taylor, who advertised his presence in a lavishly designed advertisement in the newspaper. Taylor's portrait demonstrates his self-image as an aristocratic personality who was very concerned about his outward appearance.
The founding of the general hospital in Bamberg
Prince Bishop Franz Ludwig von Erthal led an ambitious reform program that included the construction of a new general hospital in Bamberg. In contrast to the traditional infirmaries, this hospital was used explicitly for the treatment of curable diseases.
Erthal's personal physician Adalbert Friedrich Marcus advanced to become a central figure in Bamberg's medical system. He headed the hospital until his death in 1816 and shaped the direction of the hospital through his openness to new medical knowledge.
Marcus promoted the good reputation of Bamberg medicine through publications such as the description of the Bamberg hospital that appeared in 1797, in which he describes its objectives and facilities. The founding of the St. Getreu mental hospital was also his initiative.
Vaccination against smallpox
Adalbert Friedrich Marcus was one of the first southern German doctors to recognize the potential of the new smallpox vaccination developed by the English doctor Edward Jenner. In 1801 he dealt with concerns about vaccination and tried to dispel them with facts.
In the context of the introduction of general compulsory vaccination in Bavaria, the doctor Carl Jacob Diruff, who worked temporarily in Bamberg, spoke out clearly in favor of the smallpox vaccination.
Measures against cholera
Rosshirt's writing, published in 1831, was intended to provide medical laypeople with recommendations for the identification, prevention and treatment of cholera, which had been imported from Asia and was still largely unknown in Europe.
For the same reason, the Bamberg doctor Christian Pfeufer published a similar text in 1832, which was primarily intended to inform nurses and lay people about cholera.
Gebrauchs-Anweisung zu dem von Gebrüder Aston in Magdeburg erfundenen Cholera-Schwitzbad (1831)Staatsbibliothek Bamberg
Pest und Cholera
Seuchenbewältigung in Bamberg in der Frühen Neuzeit
Ausstellung der Staatsbibliothek Bamberg vom 24. April bis 15. Juli 2023 in Kooperation mit Prof. Dr. Mark Häberlein, Lehrstuhl für Neuere Geschichte unter Einbeziehung der Landesgeschichte an der Otto-Friedrich-Universität Bamberg.
Ausstellungskatalog:
Häberlein, Mark (Herausgeber): Pest und Cholera. Seuchenbewältigung und Medizinalwesen in Bamberg in der Frühen Neuzeit. Bamberg, 2023
Virtueller Ausstellungskatalog
Texte: Malcolm Holland
Fotos: Gerald Raab
Layout: Naomi Gee
