Médecin de la peste avec masque couvrant le visage à Scottish Homecoming Event. Le costume de médecin de la peste masquée a été porté par un médecin pour le protéger des maladies aéroportées. Originaire du 17th siècle, il se composait d'un pardessus de longueur cheville et d'un masque de bec semblable à un oiseau souvent rempli de substances odorantes douces ou fortes (généralement lavande), ainsi que de gants, de bottes, d'un chapeau à large bord et d'un vêtement de dessus extérieur.
3600 x 2400 px | 30,5 x 20,3 cm | 12 x 8 inches | 300dpi
Date de la prise de vue:
9 août 2014
Lieu:
Ardesier, Invernesshire, UK
Informations supplémentaires:
Cette image peut avoir des imperfections car il s’agit d’une image historique ou de reportage.
A plague doctor (Italian: physici epidemeie, Dutch: pestmeester, German: Pestarzt), was a special medical physician of the Middle Ages who saw those who had the bubonic plague. They were specifically hired by towns that had many plague victims in times of plague epidemics. Since the city was paying their salary they treated everyone, the rich and the poor. They were not normally professionally trained experienced physicians or surgeons, and often were second rate doctors not able to otherwise run a successful medical business or young physicians just out of school trying to get a medical business going. They were not otherwise a general practitioner or “family doctor”. Plague doctors by their covenant treated only plague patients and were known as municipal or “community plague doctors” , whereas “general practitioners” were separate doctors and both might be in the same European city or town at the same time. The beak they had was a filter for what they believed to be bad, infected air.In France and the Netherlands plague doctors many times didn’t have any medical training and were referred to as “empirics” – and even in one case he was just a fruit-seller beforehand. Being a medieval plague doctor was unpleasant, risky, and difficult. The chances of survival in times of a plague epidemic were slim. Because of the dangers and difficulties involved, plague doctors were very hard to find. The mask had glass openings in the eyes and a curved beak shaped like that of a bird. Straps held the beak in front of the doctor's nose.[3] The mask had two small nose holes and was a type of respirator which contained aromatic items.[4] The beak could hold dried flowers (including roses and carnations), herbs (including mint), spices, camphor, or a vinegar sponge. The purpose of the mask was to keep away bad smells, which were thought to be the principal cause of the disease in the miasma theory of infection, before it was disproved by germ theory.
