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Ancient Medicine

7 Medieval Medicines Dug Up By Archaeologists That Actually Work

Medical waste is generally something to be avoided, but for archaeologists it provides a rare opportunity to show that medieval medicine wasn’t all hocus pocus. “10 bizarre medieval medical practices”, “crazy potions and nasty…

How to Pass Yourself Off as a Medieval Doctor in Six Easy Steps

Medieval medicine is a bizarre and almost magical thing. It’s as rich in detailed botanical descriptions as it is in off-the-wall remedies, like powdered owls and toad goo. Germs hadn’t been discovered yet, and…

A new medical diagnosis for Julius Caesar

Medical experts from London’s Imperial College now think Julius Caesar had a series of mini-strokes. But how do they know? Why is this discovery so important? And what can the application of modern medical…
Seven tell-signs that help archaeologists see disease

Six ways archaeologists can see disease in dead people

We know that illnesses have existed as long as there have been humans to get ill – but how do archaeologists identify disease in the past? Palaeopathology is the study of ancient diseases, which…

Got the plague? 10 ways to cure it (or at least try)

With the Crossrail excavations of the Bedlam burial ground excavations in the news, we are reminded of the thousands of Londoners who died during the Great Plague of London (1665-1666). But did you know…

Trepanation: A How-To Guide

Despite the saying, sometimes, you really do need a hole in the head. Evidence for trepanation (making a hole in the skull) appears in the archaeological record across cultures and time and it is…

Ancient Bionics: The Origins of Modern Prosthetics

Prosthetics have recently been in the news for all sorts of reasons – from bionic eyes to limbs that resemble works of art. But where (and when) did it all begin? Delving into illness…

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