Most people today treat a cough with over-the-counter medicines readily available at pharmacies. In the Middle Ages, treating a cough often required visiting a physician or pharmacist, relying on remedies far removed from modern conveniences. What remedies did medieval healers use to combat coughs?
Here are five ninth-century recipes for medicines used to treat a cough. They come from the writings of Sabur ibn Sahl, who worked as a physician and pharmacist in Iran, earning a reputation significant enough that he was hired by the Abbasid Caliph and moved to Baghdad. Some of his writings survive, including The Small Dispensatory, which lists over 400 medicines that cover a range of ailments.
This includes several recipes for treating coughs. Typically, Ibn Sahl explains what a particular medicine is good for, listing the ingredients and how they should be prepared, and finishing by explaining the final product – either a liquid that one drinks, or a pill or pastille (a lozenge) to be eaten. In some cases, Ibn Sahl also adds bits of information about the weight of the ingredients (a dirham would be the equivalent of just over three grams).
While we don’t encourage you to make use of these recipes to treat your own illness, it is fascinating to show how medieval healers were also trying to treat their patients.
The preparation of the sebesten decoction which is useful against cough, pleurisy, pain in the chest, and pleural
Take appropriate quantities of scraped, crushed liquorice roots, sweet soft seedless raisins, dried figs, sebesten, jujubes, and maidenhair; cook this to obtain its water, and drink on its own or together with oils – God willing.
The preparation of a pill for the treatment of cough
Take tragacanth, the oil of plum stones, the peeled seeds of serpent melon, the capsules of the light-coloured poppy, wheat starch, purslane seeds, liquorice rob, saffron, white sugar candy, and candy twenty dirham each. These ingredients are brought together by pounding and straining them, as far as possible, through a cloth of silk, and then by kneading them with fresh water. This is formed into flat pills, and put under the tongue when required.
The preparation of another pill for the treatment of cough
Take the peeled seeds of serpent melon three dirham; liquorice roots eight dirham; pulsane seeds one dirham. These ingredients are brought together by pounding and straining them, as far as possible, through a cloth of silk, and then by kneading them with egg white. This is formed into flat pills, and put under the tongue at night.
Another confection which is useful against moist cough, emphysema, trapped wind, and it astricts the belly
Take white sugar candy four dirham; Oriental frankincense ten dirham; opium three dirham; saffron half a dirham. These ingredients are brought together by pounding and straining them through a cloth of silk, and then by kneading them with combfree honey. This is stored in a vessel, and a potion may be made by using it in a quantity of chickpea.
The preparation of the poppy pastilles which are useful against spitting of blood, fever, cough, and pain in the chest.
Take stalkless red roses and gum-arabic two dirham each; tabasheer and saffron half a dirham of each; liquorice rob, wheat starch, tragacanth, and poppy capsules two dirham each. These ingredients are brought together by pounding and straining. This is formed into pastilles weighing one dirham each, dried, and drunk with wine boiled down to one quarter or the infusion of alhagi for the treatment of hot fever and bloody expectoration, with hyssop-water for the treatment of cough, and with wine boiled down to one third for the treatment of spitting of blood.
Analyzing the recipes reveals several common ingredients and techniques that highlight the sophisticated approach medieval physicians took in creating their remedies. Liquorice stands out as a cornerstone ingredient, appearing in nearly all the recipes for its known soothing properties for coughs and throat irritation. Similarly, saffron, sugar candy, and tragacanth frequently recur, suggesting their essential roles in both improving the efficacy and palatability of the medicines. Poppy capsules and seeds also feature prominently, valued for their sedative and pain-relieving effects, further underscoring the detailed understanding of natural substances in addressing respiratory ailments.
The preparation methods themselves also exhibit notable consistency. Many recipes involve pounding ingredients into fine powders and straining them through silk to create a refined mixture. Sweeteners like sugar and honey are used to mask the bitterness of certain medicinal components, making the remedies more pleasant to consume. These shared elements not only reflect the careful thought behind these treatments but also reveal a reliance on ingredients readily available in the Middle East. Overall, the recipes highlight the balance of practical knowledge and cultural influences in medieval medical practices.
The Small Dispensatory, by Sabur ibn Sahl, was translated by Oliver Kahl and published by Brill in 2003. Click here to buy it on Amazon.com
Most people today treat a cough with over-the-counter medicines readily available at pharmacies. In the Middle Ages, treating a cough often required visiting a physician or pharmacist, relying on remedies far removed from modern conveniences. What remedies did medieval healers use to combat coughs?
Here are five ninth-century recipes for medicines used to treat a cough. They come from the writings of Sabur ibn Sahl, who worked as a physician and pharmacist in Iran, earning a reputation significant enough that he was hired by the Abbasid Caliph and moved to Baghdad. Some of his writings survive, including The Small Dispensatory, which lists over 400 medicines that cover a range of ailments.
This includes several recipes for treating coughs. Typically, Ibn Sahl explains what a particular medicine is good for, listing the ingredients and how they should be prepared, and finishing by explaining the final product – either a liquid that one drinks, or a pill or pastille (a lozenge) to be eaten. In some cases, Ibn Sahl also adds bits of information about the weight of the ingredients (a dirham would be the equivalent of just over three grams).
While we don’t encourage you to make use of these recipes to treat your own illness, it is fascinating to show how medieval healers were also trying to treat their patients.
The preparation of the sebesten decoction which is useful against cough, pleurisy, pain in the chest, and pleural
Take appropriate quantities of scraped, crushed liquorice roots, sweet soft seedless raisins, dried figs, sebesten, jujubes, and maidenhair; cook this to obtain its water, and drink on its own or together with oils – God willing.
The preparation of a pill for the treatment of cough
Take tragacanth, the oil of plum stones, the peeled seeds of serpent melon, the capsules of the light-coloured poppy, wheat starch, purslane seeds, liquorice rob, saffron, white sugar candy, and candy twenty dirham each. These ingredients are brought together by pounding and straining them, as far as possible, through a cloth of silk, and then by kneading them with fresh water. This is formed into flat pills, and put under the tongue when required.
The preparation of another pill for the treatment of cough
Take the peeled seeds of serpent melon three dirham; liquorice roots eight dirham; pulsane seeds one dirham. These ingredients are brought together by pounding and straining them, as far as possible, through a cloth of silk, and then by kneading them with egg white. This is formed into flat pills, and put under the tongue at night.
Another confection which is useful against moist cough, emphysema, trapped wind, and it astricts the belly
Take white sugar candy four dirham; Oriental frankincense ten dirham; opium three dirham; saffron half a dirham. These ingredients are brought together by pounding and straining them through a cloth of silk, and then by kneading them with combfree honey. This is stored in a vessel, and a potion may be made by using it in a quantity of chickpea.
The preparation of the poppy pastilles which are useful against spitting of blood, fever, cough, and pain in the chest.
Take stalkless red roses and gum-arabic two dirham each; tabasheer and saffron half a dirham of each; liquorice rob, wheat starch, tragacanth, and poppy capsules two dirham each. These ingredients are brought together by pounding and straining. This is formed into pastilles weighing one dirham each, dried, and drunk with wine boiled down to one quarter or the infusion of alhagi for the treatment of hot fever and bloody expectoration, with hyssop-water for the treatment of cough, and with wine boiled down to one third for the treatment of spitting of blood.
Analyzing the recipes reveals several common ingredients and techniques that highlight the sophisticated approach medieval physicians took in creating their remedies. Liquorice stands out as a cornerstone ingredient, appearing in nearly all the recipes for its known soothing properties for coughs and throat irritation. Similarly, saffron, sugar candy, and tragacanth frequently recur, suggesting their essential roles in both improving the efficacy and palatability of the medicines. Poppy capsules and seeds also feature prominently, valued for their sedative and pain-relieving effects, further underscoring the detailed understanding of natural substances in addressing respiratory ailments.
The preparation methods themselves also exhibit notable consistency. Many recipes involve pounding ingredients into fine powders and straining them through silk to create a refined mixture. Sweeteners like sugar and honey are used to mask the bitterness of certain medicinal components, making the remedies more pleasant to consume. These shared elements not only reflect the careful thought behind these treatments but also reveal a reliance on ingredients readily available in the Middle East. Overall, the recipes highlight the balance of practical knowledge and cultural influences in medieval medical practices.
The Small Dispensatory, by Sabur ibn Sahl, was translated by Oliver Kahl and published by Brill in 2003. Click here to buy it on Amazon.com
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