Occasionally mentioned in written sources since the Early Middle Ages, embalming with evisceration spreads considerably and becomes quite usual practice for aristocratic elites from the late 13th century to the early 19th century. Apothecaries prepare aromatic powders including many plant organs and exudates supposed to preserve the body. Numerous encyclopaedias and treatises of medicine list these ingredients and show that the recipes are very diverse. Moreover, several studies of embalmed bodies have demonstrated the potential of archaeobotanical analyses coupling pollen and macro-remains for identifying this material. This paper aims to compile a synthesis of written and archaeological sources from France and Italy, and to assess the relevance of an interdisciplinary approach for a better understanding of this aristocratic burial practice. It demonstrates that both types of sources and approaches are strongly complementary and highlights their inherent advantages and methodological limitations. In order to understand which criteria were determinant in the composition of the embalming powders, their medicinal, odoriferous and symbolic properties are discussed. Finally, this work proposes some methodological perspectives and triggers new research avenues on the history of pharmacy in Late Medieval and modern Europe.
Plants and aromatics for embalming in Late Middle Ages and modern period: a synthesis of written sources and archaeobotanical data (France, Italy)
Résumé
en
Occasionally mentioned in written sources since the Early Middle Ages, embalming with evisceration spreads considerably and becomes quite usual practice for aristocratic elites from the late 13th century to the early 19th century. Apothecaries prepare aromatic powders including many plant organs and exudates supposed to preserve the body. Numerous encyclopaedias and treatises of medicine list these ingredients and show that the recipes are very diverse. Moreover, several studies of embalmed bodies have demonstrated the potential of archaeobotanical analyses coupling pollen and macro-remains for identifying this material. This paper aims to compile a synthesis of written and archaeological sources from France and Italy, and to assess the relevance of an interdisciplinary approach for a better understanding of this aristocratic burial practice. It demonstrates that both types of sources and approaches are strongly complementary and highlights their inherent advantages and methodological limitations. In order to understand which criteria were determinant in the composition of the embalming powders, their medicinal, odoriferous and symbolic properties are discussed. Finally, this work proposes some methodological perspectives and triggers new research avenues on the history of pharmacy in Late Medieval and modern Europe.
1
LA3M -
Laboratoire d'Archéologie Médiévale et Moderne en Méditerranée
( 225873 )
- 5 rue du château de l'Horloge - CS 90412 - 13097 AIX-EN-PROVENCE Cedex 2
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Aix Marseille Université ( 198056 )
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Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique UMR7298 ( 441569 )
2
CReAAH -
Centre de Recherche en Archéologie, Archéosciences, Histoire
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Campus de Beaulieu
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35042 Rennes Cedex- France
- France
Le Mans Université ( 7566 )
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Université de Rennes ( 105160 )
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Université de Rennes 2 ( 406201 )
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Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( 441569 )
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Université de Nantes - UFR Histoire, Histoire de l'Art et Archéologie ( 534222 )
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Université de Nantes 93263 ( 93263 )
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Ministère de la Culture ( 542949 )
3
AASPE -
Archéozoologie, archéobotanique : sociétés, pratiques et environnements
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- Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle - Case postale 56 - 55 rue Buffon - 75005 Paris
- France
Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle ( 7512 )
;
Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique UMR7209 ( 441569 )
4
Inrap, Cesson-Sévigné -
Institut national de recherches archéologiques préventives - Centre de recherches archéologiques de Cesson-Sévigné
( 408745 )
- 37 rue Bignon, CS67737. 35577 Cesson-Sévigné
- France
Institut national de recherches archéologiques préventives ( 301475 )
5
Division of paleopathology, History of Medicine and Bioethics
( 204647 )
- Department of Oncology, University of Pisa, Via Roma 57 56126 Pisa
- Italie
University of Pisa - Università di Pisa ( 366408 )
6
Inrap -
Institut national de recherches archéologiques préventives
( 301475 )
- 121 rue d'Alésia
75014 Paris
- France
7
AMIS -
Anthropologie Moléculaire et Imagerie de Synthèse
( 445683 )
- 37 Allées Jules Guesde
31073 Toulouse
- France
Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier ( 217752 )
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Université de Toulouse ( 443875 )
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Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique UMR5288 ( 441569 )
Vegetation History and Archaeobotany
(ISSN : 0939-6314, ISSN électronique : 1617-6278)
Publié par Springer Verlag
Revue non référencée dans Sherpa-Romeo
Date de publication
2018-01
Domaine(s)
Sciences de l'Homme et Société/Archéologie et Préhistoire
Rémi Corbineau, Marie-Pierre Ruas, Delphine Barbier-Pain, Gino Fornaciari, Hélène Dupont, et al.. Plants and aromatics for embalming in Late Middle Ages and modern period: a synthesis of written sources and archaeobotanical data (France, Italy). Vegetation History and Archaeobotany, 2018, 27 (1), pp.151-164. ⟨10.1007/s00334-017-0620-4⟩. ⟨halshs-01566177⟩