Mrs Corlyon, 'A Booke of divers Medecines' (1606)

Pictured above is the cover of a recipe/receipt book manuscript dated 1606 that is held and has been digitised by the Wellcome Library's Archive and Manuscripts department. This is where my research predominantly lies at the moment - exploring the themes of maleficium and beneficium in women's receipt collections, and I am currently in the early stages of trying to find a sensible approach to transcribing (or transcribbling!) some of this large, and very fascinating collection as part of gathering my contextual, non-regional primary source material.

This manuscript as a whole, is fantastically accessible; the work is clearly organised into chapters of health remedies relating to each part of the body, there is an index at the back in the authors own hand and the paleography is uncharacteristically legible from what I can tell of similarly dated works. I wanted to make the most of the clarity of this work in order to make a start in practicing my transcription skills, and so decided to share a few of the extracts from the chapter 3 on 'Eares'. I chose these extracts mostly because they made me chuckle a little, but also because they seemed to say a lot, in just a few examples, about seventeenth-century common practices and processes in both making and administering health remedies (i.e. lots of heat and steam), about the interchangibility of food products into medicines (e.g. fruit, bread and spices) and possibly even more about the way in which these women (and no doubt men too) approached the task of writing down these receipts in a particular format. In the examples of the three recipes below for 'the singinge in the eares' , the structure of the work is able to imply a sense of efficacy to the reader too, who seems to be given the one with the most authority first ('it hath been approved'), to an additional 'very good' medecine, to just 'an other medicine' for the same ailments.

I'll include an image of the page I've taken these examples from below - apologies for the size - it was my intention that it would allow errors in transcription and interpretation to be corrected where noticed, but that seems unlikely seeing the outcome. Anyway, I do hope you enjoy these as much as I did!


"A Booke of diuers Medecines, Broothes, Salues, Waters, Syroppes and Oyntementes of which many or the most part haue been experienced and tryed by the speciall practize of Mrs Corlyon. Anno Domini 1606."

A Medecine to drawe and Earwigge out of the Eare.

Take a sweete Aple and rost it in the fyer untill it bee halfe rosted, then take of the softest of it, and spreade it very thick uppon a Lynnen clothe, and lay it to your eare as hott as you can suffer it, and lye upon the same syde, and when you do feele it stirr, you must lye very still untill it be come to the Aple, and then you must very sodainely pluck it away least the Earewigge retorne into your heade againe. And if you thincke there be any more laye a newe one to your eare.

A Medecine for the singinge in the eares.

Take Barlye flower and bake a loofe of it and when you drawe it our of the Oven devide it in the midste, and strowe uppon it the powder of Nuttmegges, and as hott as you may suffer it, holde it to your Eares, and do so often and you shall fynde ease. It hath been approved.

An other very good medecine for the same.

Take a quart of Sacke, and putt thereto an handfull of grounde Juye(?), as much of Pennyroyall, and lett them boile well together and as hott as you can suffer it lett the steeme thereof goe into your eares by a tunnell that will close cover(?) the pott. Use it in the morning and when you goe to Bedd, and keepe yourselfe warme.

An other Medicine for the same.

Take a greate Onyon and cutt of a rounde peece of the crowne, make an hollowe place within it, and putt into it a little Mythridate, a little olde Sallett Oyle and a spoonefull of Aquavite(?), and cloose it withe the peece that you cutt of the crowne and wrappe it in a paper and roste it in the embers and when it is very softe, that it it out of the fyer and bruse it altogether and laye it in a clothe and as hott as you may suffer it, holde it to your eare.

"At the Sign of the Flower De Luce"

C17th Astrology and Health

A great little (1685) example of an advertisement for the sale of a kind of knowledge, secrets or skills.

In this case, we have an example of an astrologer seeking business but it is no doubt reflective of the style of how other cunning-men and women or other empirics might advertise their 'wares'. The link drawn between astrology and medicine/health is of particular interest to me.

Source taken from EEBO, and transcribed by myself . As below, I have tried to remain as true to the original format as possible. I have refrained from modernising spelling, italics and punctuation marks are the authors own. I have also tried to maintain letter casing.


'At the Sign of the Flower De Luce' near the Church Porch in the Little Miuories, without Aldgate.

A Gentleman, who in his Youth was several Years a Student in Cambridge; hath Travelled, and for above 33; Years, spent the greatest part of his Time, In search after the solid Truth, of the Sublime Science, of Astrology, in all its Various Parts: Hitherto, for the private Satisfaction, and Diversion only, of himself and Intimate Friends. He is now willing, for the Benefit of all Sober Quaerents, to Communicate his Skill, by giving a faithful Answer to any Lawfull Serious Demand, within the Compass of the said Art; to Calculate Nativities, and impart his knowledge, to any Ingenious Gentleman or Others, who shall desire it.
We will add one Instance, (out of many) to prove the Usefulness and Verity of this Noble Science.
The greatest Evil that Invadeth our Bodies, is Sickness, to the Cure of which a certain knowledge of its Cause, Nature, Contenuance, End, &c. With a fit Election of Remedies, and the Time of Preparing, and Administring them, &c. is usually necessary: Now this Heavenly Fountain supplieth us with all this, as manifold Experience hath fully Convinced, not only us, but all the Sons of Urania.