Octoberfest 2017: Corpse Medicine

Hi! This was probably the first post idea I had for this year's Octoberfest and I've been so excited to research it. Corpse medicine sounds so creepy and disgusting, which made it perfect for this series. The original ideas I had for this year's Octoberfest were all aboard the creepy and disgusting train but many of them were later taken off because I couldn't find enough information about them to put out an entire post. Corpse medicine, thankfully, has been part of society for so long that I was able to keep it on the list. Per usual with me, if you research things like this on the norm then this post may not net any new info for you, and I'm sorry if that's the case. If you're new to the subject like myself though, you'll be fine. lol I mainly just want to give an introductory look into the topic and what it is; if you'd like to learn more than I've included there'll be research resources, as always, linked throughout the post. Let's get into it! p.s. Put your food away unless your stomach is stronger than mine. This shit is nasty. lol

What is it?
The medical term for corpse medicine is 'medical cannibalism,' which refers to the usage and consumption of human organs or other body parts for medicinal reasons. I've also seen it called iartic cannibalism, which is virtually the same thing, but corpse medicine sounds gorier so I prefer that term. 


Brief history

Previously, people would use the bones of saints and holy figures for healing, but they didn't actually start using corpses specifically for healing ailments until around the 1200s. Corpses, especially those of the religious nature, were said to have healing powers for the ill, and people were healed by touching the person's corpse or drinking from its skull. Saint Felix, an Italian martyr, was said to have helped anoint the sick even in death. Pilgrims would pour olive oil into the holes in the tomb, which would pass over the saint's remains and out of the holes at the bottom, which would then anoint and heal the sick. Drinking wine from the mummified skulls of saints or drinking the oil dripping out of a saint's tomb were said to help improve one's health, and on one occasion, a man chewed off the finger bone of Mary Magdalene. I think these were the early days of corpse medicine, but people didn't realize it just yet.
In the 1400s, the Romans were participating in an act that would actually be referred to as medical vampirism rather than cannibalism, because their main focus was consuming the blood of the newly dead. Gladiators were the preferred option, as blood was believed to have revitalizing and healing properties which would help the old and sick. The blood didn't necessarily have to be from the dead gladiator, but it was favored because of the gladiator's strength and vitality (ironic since they were dead lol). At some point, people began to consume the livers of gladiators, probably for the same reason. Roman concession stands capitalized on this and began selling the blood. A doctor of this time recommended also taking blood from the living, children more specifically, due to their energy, youth and good health.  I guess you could call this the earliest form of a blood transfusion, because much like today, taking in the blood of another was said to improve one's health almost immediately by giving it more healthy blood to work with. One notable time that this failed was when a pope was on his deathbed and three Shepard boys were bled dry in order to give the pope enough blood to revitalize him. All four died. 
The practice peaked between the 1500s and 1700s, when the Europeans caught wind of it and did it the most. It was almost like a trend, as both the elites and laymen used it to heal various ailments, both surface and life-threatening. Some royals began making their own corpse medicine--a king paid thousands of pounds for the recipe to what is now called "King's Drops" so that he could make the potion himself in his own laboratory--and others became corpse medicine after their executions, although this had more to do with them breaking the law and less with them wanting to be immortalized. Doctors began to create recipes for their treatments, some of which I'm going to share below. One doctor I continue to read about from this time was a doctor named Paracelsus, who became widely known throughout this era and caused quite a stir with those who did not believe in his medicinal methods. He also inspired a group of followers, who were referred to as Paracelsians. The cure-all during this era was mummified flesh, which was said to cure a number of ailments. The first and most prized target based off of that ingredient alone was Egyptian mummies, who were consumed in such large amounts that for a time, mummies were scarce. They began to be imported into Europe for medicinal purposes, but couldn't meet the demand after awhile and people began robbing the tombs in order to continue making the medicine. After the focus turned from Egyptians to prisoners, Irish graveyards saw their plots being plundered as well. 
At the height of the corpse medicine era, some executioners also doubled as surgeons, as body stripping became a thing. After the execution, the bodies would be taken to morgues, where the executioner would strip the body of any useful organs and viable parts, then sell those to apothecaries, who would use them for their medicines. After Egyptians, prisoners who'd recently become executed were the hottest commodity for those practicing corpse medicine or needing healing of some kind. Because people were being executed all the time, the demand was easy to meet and executions became somewhat of a hot spot, especially for the elderly and ill. Executioners and some residents started to attend executions with cups to catch the blood as it flowed from the prisoner's body, and during others people would mop the floor with handkerchiefs, hoping to catch as much blood as they possibly could. The same would go for the prisoner's sweat or fat. Any part that could be saved usually was, and was immediately repurposed for a medicine, tonic, tincture or ointment. They were used as morning drams, pick-me-ups for those who needed it, daily or nightly treatments, and some kept a medicine on hand all the time just in case anything happened to them.
As with any decent thing, there was a downside that commonly trapped the poor and stole what little money they had. While the rich and royals had genuine bits of cadaver in their medicinal treatments, counterfeit medicine started to make the rounds, using items said to be corpse parts but really weren't. The prices for these items were purposely skewed so that the poor could afford them and due to the demand, shysters had the ability to make a killing (no pun intended) off of their counterfeit tinctures, ointments and drinks. In some cases, the parts weren't from corpses and in cases involving the use of mummified remains, the remains weren't always Egyptian. Many treatments purchased by the public said to be from Egyptian remains were really local remains from the nearest graveyard. In lieu of the Egyptian remains, which began to run scarce, people eventually opted instead to go with the stronger females and males who'd recently died. This opened up another profitable road, this one for grave robbers, who would loot nearby cemeteries for the newly buried. 
Around the Victorian era, corpse medicine as a widely accepted practice began to die out. Other medical treatments were on the rise, and medical advancements began to prove some of the previous methods useless. As the medical field began to refine itself, older, more barbaric methods were thankfully ushered out. The mentality around the activity also began to change, and this was probably the largest motivator for the death (again, no pun intended. I'm sorry lol) of the corpse medicine era. Corpse medicine has a new place in society now, but is used as an actual treatment rather than something consumed in such a rudimentary form. 
I came across cannibalism practices in other cultures, but they weren't for medicinal purposes; they were more for funereal, honor-bound or ritualistic purposes. Because today's post is about medical cannibalism, not cannibalism in general as a practice, I didn't want to get too off-base so I didn't include anything about it. Cannibalism in general has a very long, very complex history which obviously has a tie to medical cannibalism, but it would lengthen this post even more if I were to include it. But to summarize a bit, while corpse medicine was popular in its day, it was also controversial. There was a lot of European judgment toward the cannibalistic tendencies of indigenous peoples and many people saw this as hypocritical. Considering the European approach to cannibalism, it seemed as though they were trying to take the high road when they were doing the same thing, just for a different reason. So even though I did not include it in the rest of today's post, I did include a couple of links for you to read about them on your own; they're the last two links for this section.  Research resources: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7




Corpse medicine uses & recipes

The benefits varied on the medicine because different body parts were said to have different benefits to the body. A popular mentality on the benefits was that to treat an ailment in a particular body part, the medicine for it needed to be created by using the same body part or organ. It amused me (and settled my stomach a little because this shit was gross and I needed to laugh my way through it lol) to write these out in the form of traditional recipes with them being so horrid, so here are a few recipes that people used to heal various ailments. My sense of humor is a little dark. lol I used a few different sites to gather the recipes but they'll all be sourced below. 

Mummial Quintessence
-4lbs. flesh from a freshly dead young man, preferably from a meaty area on his body -glass container -highly rectified wine -a large amount of salt -mallet
Instructions: After securing the flesh, add to the container along with the wine. Steep for a sufficient amount of time and cure the flesh with salt. Once flesh has cured, pound with a mallet until powdered. 
*This is another recipe that relies on the flesh being procured from a strong young man of sound mind, with the flesh needing to be from a meaty area in order to withstand the vigorous process of powdering it. The quintessence was said to restoring and maintaining good health.



Mellified Man
-1 male volunteer, around 70-80 years of age -honey....a lot of it -coffin
Instructions: After finding a volunteer, bathe him thoroughly and limit his diet to nothing but honey until the man dies, which takes around a month. Prepare him for burial and seal him inside a honey-filled coffin. After a century, the coffin could then be opened and the remains be consumed. 
*This was said to be a treatment for injured and broken bones. It actually isn't a European recipe though; it's Chinese, proving that even though Europe gets most of the credit when it comes to corpse medicine, it was clearly a thing in Asia as well. I know this post has had more of my commentary sprinkled throughout it than normal, but I couldn't help it. On that note, I have to wonder--who would volunteer for this? 



Fat Ointment:
-fat from a freshly dead corpse -animal fat, again from a freshly dead corpse -blood and marrow -beer
Instructions: If doing the entire procedure oneself, boil the corpses and render the fat. If buying the fat to create the recipe oneself, after purchasing the fat, combine the ingredients and mush into a paste. Let dry and settle. 
*I guessed on the second half of those instructions because they weren't made clear in any of the sources I read. lol I'm probably wrong. This was said to help people with muscle cramps and joint pain. 



Brain & Horse Dung Epilepsy Tincture
-1 large section of human flesh, hardened -1 human brain, along with membranes, arteries, veins, nerves and spine pith -container of wine -large container of horse dung
Instructions: Mush the brain, membranes, arteries, veins and pith into a paste. Collect the flesh, which should be obtained from the fresh corpse of a young man who died a violent death, and allow them to harden. Cut the flesh then into 4oz. squares and steep them in a container of wine. When the flesh has been soaked for a sufficient amount of time, drop them into a large vessel with fresh horse dung. This mixture must then steep for a minimum of 6 months before usage. 
*This recipe was supposed to help with epilepsy by combining the strength of a horse with the strength of a gladiator, which is why the specifications for the flesh were to obtain it from a young man who'd died a violent death. The manner of death was said to speak to the man's strength, which would help the ailing with their convulsions. 



Mummy Curative Supplement
-fresh male corpse, exactly 24 years of age and dead no longer than one day -myrrh -large container of wine -knife -oil (optional)
Instructions: Leave the body outside for one full day and one full night, then cut into strips. If the flesh begins to emit an odor (decomposition), sprinkle myrrh powder over it to disguise the smell and prevent a bitter taste. Then steep it in wine for several days. Macerating the flesh with oil may be a good option in order to prevent nausea, as the lengthy time spent decomposing outside will upset the stomach.
*The instructions for the body were very specific. As I said, the male was to be exactly 24 years old and dead no longer than one day, but he should also have been a redhead free of prior injuries or blemishes and have died either by hanging, breaking on the wheel or being impaled. The doctor who created this was a follower of one of the more prominent doctors throughout the corpse medicine era, a physician named Paracelsus. This was said to have curative benefits, but I wasn't allowed access to the actual article the source got this from so I'm unsure as to what exactly its supposed to help cure. 



Blood Jam
-blood, taken from a ruddy complexioned, plump individual (that was really the directive here) -silk sieve -bronze mortar -pot and knife, for stirring -smooth, flat wooden workspace -glass jar
Instructions: Collect the blood, which should be fresh, and let it dry down until the consistency is sticky. Lay it on the workspace and cut it into thin slices, draining any remaining liquid. Once it has been properly dried out, add the slices to a pot and cook into a batter, stirring with a knife. Once all liquids have been cooked out and the batter forms, place it in a mortar and pound it, forcing it through a fine silk sieve. Discard anything not pushed through the sieve and pour the remnants into a glass jar; seal it tightly. This will hold for awhile but should be done again the following spring. 
*Specifying that the blood be from a ruddy-faced, plump person ensured the richness of the blood and its ability to be canned, sealed and stored for a significant amount of time. The instructions loosely follow regular jam-making steps as I am guessing it was to be consumed in the same way as a regular jam, but I'm not sure exactly what ailments this is supposed to heal. 



This next little bit isn't going to have full-on recipes like the ones above, but I'll just tell you what different body parts and organs were used to heal or treat. 
Mummy (this more so refers to flesh from a mummy)--bleeding, venomous bites, blood clots, coughs, menstrual pain, joint pain, headaches, cataracts, leprosy, dysentery, tumors and ulcers, improve healing from injuries Blood--healing, improve general health, restored youth, energy and stamina, strength, cure all for diseases, epilepsy, tuberculosis, nosebleeds, staunch bleeding,  Fat--gout, bruising (both internal and external), rashes, bleeding, joint and bone pain, muscle cramps Skull--fainting, gout, epilepsy, convulsions, fevers, nosebleeds, lust, stomach troubles, headaches, improve general health Sweat--hemorrhoids, cysts, warts Placenta & aborted fetal tissues--asthma, improve complexion, increase stamina Liver--vitality, restorative, improve general health
Some of these things were used in powdered form, while others were pastes, plasters and some were to be used via direct contact. This is more for the sweat "medicine," rather than being in a container or drained from a victim like the blood, this was something that the ailing had to come in direct contact with the person to receive. Others were commonly made into ointments like the fat, but this was also used via direct contact in some situations for surface issues like bruising. Some were more versatile, like the mummy flesh, so it was used for and in a variety of methods. 

Research resources: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5




Corpse medicine today  The equivalent of using a deceased person's organs or blood for one's health can loosely be connected to organ transplants today. By allowing a perfectly working organ from a deceased body to be transplanted into the body of someone who would die without that same organ, it saves a life and allows a functioning organ to continue to be used. The same mentality of corpse medicine can be applied to blood transfusions and even mouth-to-mouth, at a lesser level. I think one of the largest literal forms of medical cannibalism (in a way) still in existence today, which I was aware of but didn't put together until I started reading on the topic, is the consumption of placenta after giving birth. It's said to have healing and nutritional benefits for both the mother and baby, if the mother is breastfeeding. You can consume the placenta or plant it, but I've heard of more people having their placenta powdered and turned into pills, which are taken daily. The last item I mentioned on the list above, the placenta and aborted fetal tissue, is actually a current medical option that people still use to heal their ailments with the belief that aborted fetal tissue is a viable source for revitalizing the skin and body. Various parts of a corpse are still used to help the living, but they're no longer devoured as they were a few centuries ago. The buying and selling of organs of the deceased hasn't gone anywhere though; the black market organ trade is still a thing and despite its illegality, it, like its predecessor, is a thriving practice. 
As a whole, however, the practice has largely become a thing of the past. I have seen some articles about it still being practiced in ethnic cultures, but wasn't able to corroborate it enough to give it its own section in the post. Medical cannibalism as a major medicinal treatment fell out of favor with the general public sometime in the 1800s, just before the start of the Victorian era, and it is now obviously against the law to loot a corpse or steal any organs from a morgue, whether its for medicinal reasons or not. Loot a corpse. I say that as a gamer but I don't know if people actually refer to it that way. If they don't, I'm sorry. LOL

And that was corpse medicine in a nutshell. Again per usual, check out the research resources I used; even though this post is quite long I didn't include everything I read, so check those out if you want more information on the topic. I know that a few of the links are the same; I used some sources multiple times but didn't want to avoid giving them credit where I used their information. I hope you enjoyed and again, I'm sorry for the last two posts being off schedule. We're all caught up now, so you'll be seeing me again at the top of next week with the next entry in the series. Can you believe we're already most of the way through the month? Where is the year going? On second thought, considering how shit 2017 has been, maybe it's not such a bad thing that it's flying by. lol Anyway, I hope you enjoyed today's post and were able to learn something new. I'll see you in a few days!