By For centuries the need for the surgeon to learn more of the anatomy of the human body and to practice his art has required students of medicine to examine and dissect the bodies of the dead – obtained legally or otherwise – in private schools or, from the mid-eighteenth century,
Necessary Compounds: Medicines Explained
At the end of his English Physician (a work that appeared in many editions from 1652), the prolific author and apothecary Nicholas Culpeper included a section explaining what, exactly, was meant by the various compounds which physicians prescribed. Compounds were the opposite of remedies known as ‘simples’ or medicines made
Gunpowder
It is that time of year when the leaves begin to turn a beautiful mixture of red and golds, and on the air is filled with the smell of bonfires. This year the BBC have preceded the 5th November with the excellent series ‘Gunpowder’ retelling the story of the plot to