Full of ideas
A woodcut of the brain from Andreas Vesalius's groundbreaking 1543 treatise On the Fabric of the Human Body. The Elizabethans subscribed to both new scientific theories and ancient beliefs about the workings of the mind
For him that hath lost his mind, the bestselling Tudor writer Thomas Moulton recommended shaving the top of the patient's head, then applying a mat of plant fibre to the bald patch. After a sleep, he reassured, he shall be right weak, and sober enough. While this treatment seems bizarre today, it reveals a crucial element of Elizabethan beliefs about mental wellbeing: the mind and body were intrinsically connected, so any disorders of the brain could be treated via remedies that were applied to the body.
As well as consulting medical books such as Moulton's, many Elizabethans sought the advice of Simon Forman, a popular London physician. Forman, too, sometimes prescribed physiological remedies for mental afflictions. But his chief diagnostic method was - to our eyes - decidedly unusual. He always began by casting a patient's astrological chart, reflecting the contemporary belief that both mind and body were affected by the movements of the stars and planets.
Sample study
A doctor examines a patient's urine in this 1519 woodcut. The physician Simon Forman said the diseases of the mind are not seen in a piss-pot
Mental conditions were thought to be caused by wayward humours and the position of the stars
These practices exemplify the co-existence of diverse explanations for mental conditions in this period. They could be caused by internal factors, especially wayward humours - bodily fluids whose proportions and balance determined character and mood - or by external forces such as astral influences.
This story is from the June 2022 edition of BBC History Magazine.
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This story is from the June 2022 edition of BBC History Magazine.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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