Oxymel

Oxymel is a medicinal drink that was commonly used in the ancient Greek world. The drink is primarily a mixture of water, honey, and vinegar. Different types of vinegar could be used, such as white or red wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar. Primarily, oxymel was a "home remedy" that could be made with common household items to treat common illnesses that resemble what are now typically called "common colds." However, Hippocrates writes on specific uses of the medicine to cure certain more threatening illnesses such as peripneumonia and pneumonia (Hippocrates Section 11 in "On Regimen of Acute Diseases"). In terms of its actual effects on the body, oxymel would be used to soothe the throat and loosen up any bitter bile in the throat so it can be easily coughed up. We still use concoctions today to soothe the throat in similar ways. The common practice of putting honey in tea is our attempt to soothe the throat just as oxymel would have. The added vinegar merely reacts with bile in the throat to make it easier to cough up. Oxymel is still used in many Middle Eastern cultures and in small pockets in the western world. In Persia, it is called "sekanjabin" and is still in great use. There are some sources that give recipes of sekanjabin as a common dip to accommodate Romaine leaves (www.superluminal.com). Its importance has likely decreased over time with technological advances in medicine that allow for stronger cures to less threatening illnesses. [edit]Purpose Oxymel could be prescribed to promote general good health or to combat specific illnesses. As a medicine for general use, it can be used as a medicinal drink which is restorative and energizing (Osborn online). It was used to keep patients warm and comfortable while regaining their strength (Phillips 78). It is also known to quench thirst (Hippocrates 202). Beyond the general health benefits, oxymel was prescribed for various diseases by the Hippocratic corpus. If one has a hoarse, sore throat, oxymel will cause the patient to expectorate saliva and unwanted matter from the respiratory passages and provide good respiration (Hippocrates 201). Oxymel can also be used to treat a fever (Couch 192). Further down the respiratory tract, oxymel can clean the windpipe and then, with its softening properties, soothes the lungs (Hippocrates 201). Oxymel also benefits the upper abdomen (hypochondrium) and the neighbouring organs. In the digestive tract, it will help pass flatulence and urine (Hippocrates 202). Oxymel can also be used to treat certain injuries. If one has dislocated a heel, but theres no fever, oxymel can be administered (Couch 194). Gout and sciatica were also treatable with oxymel (Ramsey 264). In terms of the prevailing theory of the humours, the vinegar in oxymel is best suited to treat those with bitter bile as it dissolves the pile into phlegm which can subsequently be coughed up (Hippocrates 202).

Hippocrates, author of On Regimen in Acute Diseases

[edit]Historical

Context

Various histories of medicine mention the first prescriptions of oxymel by the Hippocratic physicians. Particularly, it is mentioned as an commonplace recommendation for ailments in Hippocrates' On Regimen in Acute Diseases (Prioreschi 307). Although Hippocrates seems to be the first source to frequently mention oxymel medicinally, it was probably a commonly used household cure before this, since Hippocrates mentions it as a pain reliever and as part of a recommended diet for the ill (Guthrie 57-8). Oxymel is mentioned again in a medicinal context during the medieval period. William of Salicet (1210-1277) taught medicine in Bologna, and is know for uniting surgery with medicine. One ailment treated with large amounts of oxymel was kidney inflammation (Guthrie 117). There seems to be no record of oxymel used medicinally by the Romans. It perhaps existed as a supplement to medicinal practice or as a syrupy drink, but a lack of sources suggest it was not a significant treatment in Roman medicine. Similarly, with the development of modern medicine, oxymel has lost its use as a type of medication. However, it is still seen as an herbal remedy or recuperative beverage, and many recipes are in circulation on the internet (see links section for some examples).

[edit]Administration

and Other Purposes

In context of the matter defined by the administration of oxymel, specifically who would administer it, there is general consensus among historians that the treatment was usually prescribed by physicians of the time to patients; however, the mixture was rarely ever actually administered by the physician. Rather, in most cases, patients would have the ingredients available at home or wherever they resided (Couch 199), and would give the treatment to themselves after careful instruction from their physician. Moreover, oxymel was usually administered in hot temperatures in the winter season and in cold temperatures in the summer season (Phillips 81), due to the fact that the everyday food intake can be altered to heat or dry the body, to produce less phlegm or more blood, but it is also possible to prescribe very specific substances outside meal times, or have them administered externally (King 45). In terms of the ways in which it would actually be administered, Hippocrates, who wrote extensively on oxymel, outlines specific criteria for its administration. It was made obvious in his writings that oxymel should only be given if there was hope of recovery (Phillips 83). In addition, it was required to only be taken tepid and in small doses (Hippocrates 202). Moreover, if the oxymel were excessively sharp it would have extreme negative effects on tenacious sputum (Hippocrates 201) and more often than not, actually made the patients condition worsen due to the fact that the sharpness would result in the failure of the oxymel in bringing up sputum. Furthermore, in most cases, oxymel should be administered in a lukewarm temperature, and as well, the treatment should also be taken at night and on an empty stomach (Hippocrates 202). In this sense, it can be taken both before and a lengthy amount of time after the ingestion of barley gruel (Hippocrates 203). Pertaining to additional items taken with oxymel in the prevention and treatment of illnesses, it seems that it is most widely known to historians that, in most cases, oxymel was most commonly taken with wine and hydromel (a mixture of honey and water) as all three treatments were the predominant drinks prescribed for sickness: oxymel was also given with winesweet wine, vinuous wine, white wine, pale wine, dark wine and hydromel (Couch 199). In addition, upon further research, it is apparent that oxymel was also often paired with the dung of a variety of animals, including the dung of the goat to treat serpiginous ulcers, as well as the dung of the pigeon (in combination with linseed) to treat and remove carbuncles. In many cases, oxymel was also used in conjunction with doses of water, given most commonly, between doses of oxymel and hydromel (Phillips 200). This method was used particularly if the patients head was affected, as well as to withdraw sputum on account of the change in the quality of drinks by causing a sort of flood (Hippocrates 203). Lastly, oxymel was also paired with lentils for the use of tending to fever resulting from fatigue when it becomes quartan, and after this treatment, the patient was made to vomit. (Longrigg 43). Overall, in ancient Greece, oxymel was paired with a variety of other remedies in the prevention and removal of a variety of illnesses. Moreover, physicians had less of a role in the administration of oxymel than other drugs or remedies of the time, as the ingredients were more readily available to the patient and they could easily administer it to themselves.

This image was taken using the oxymel process which John Dillwyn Llewelyn devised in 1856, whereby coating the collodion plates with a mixture of honey and ascetic acid allowed for their preparation beforehand.

[edit]Modernity The consumption of Oxymel continued throughout the centuries, and is still in use today. However, it is no longer considered a medicinal drink and has lost much of its popularity. Its use in what some call the Western world has for the most part been discontinued, save for the occasional recommendation by herbalists. Although in these cases it is mostly only recommended as a tasty drink which can be used to mask the unpleasant taste of other herbal remedies (www.naturalherbalism.com). Also, there is sparsely documented use of Oxymel in 14th century England; however, today its use is virtually non-exsistant (Wilkinson 182). Most notably, Oxymel managed to stay relevant in the Near East for centuries, and is still consumed regularly in Persia (Wilkinson 182). There, it is called Sikanjabin and various herbs are added to the traditional mixture (Wilkinson 182). It is then diluted and poured it over ice (Wilkinson 182). Thus, in modernity, this concoction which was once hailed as a miracle cure, has been reduced to the status of pleasant summer drink . [edit]Oxymel

and Photography

In the mid-nineteenth century, botanist and early photographer John Dillwyn Llewelyn created a new process of photography using a form of oxymel. Briefly before this process was created, the popular collodion process began which enabled photographs to be multiplied in production. Coined as the "oxymel process," using a combination of water, honey, and ascetic acid, Llewelyn began moistening collodion plates with this concoction in order to better prepare for the reproduction of photographs (www.oldmapsprintsbooks.com).

[edit]Useful

Links

On modern use: http://www.naturalherbalism.com/Alcohol-Based/How_To_Prepare_Oxymel.html http://www.superluminal.com/cookbook/beverages_sekanjabin.html Hippocrates' On Regimen in Acute Diseases: http://classics.mit.edu/Hippocrates/acutedis.html [edit]References Couch, Herbert N. The Medical Equipment of the Hippocratean Physician. Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association 67 (1936): 191-207. JSTOR. 26 Jan. 2009 < http://www.jstor.org/>. "Early Photograph Album containing Callotype Photographs." David Hulse Associates. Date accessed<http://www.oldmapsprintsbooks.com/pnorthframe-3.htm>. Guthrie, Douglas. A History of Medicine. Toronto: Thomas Nelson & Sons Ltd., 1945. Hippocrates. Hippocratic Writings. Ed. G.E.R. Lloyd, Trans. J. Chadwick & W.N. Mann. New York: Penguin Books, 1978. "How to Prepare Oxymel." Natural Herbalism: Natural Herbs and Herbal Medicine. Date accessed <http://www.naturalherbalism.com/Alcohol-Based/How_To_Prepare_Oxymel.html>. King, Helen. Greek and Roman Medicine. London. Bristol Classical Press, 2001. Longrigg, James. Greek Medicine from the Heroic to the Hellenistic Age A Source Book. New York: Routledge, 1998. Osborn, D.K. "Drink to your Health!" Greek Medicine.net. 2008. 25 January 2008 <http://www.greekmedicine.net/therapies/Drink_to_Your_Health.html>. Phillips, E.D. Doctor and Patient in Classical Greece. Greece and Rome 22 (1953): 70-81. JSTOR. 26 Jan. 2009 < http://www.jstor.org/>. Phillips, E.D. Greek Medicine. London: Thames & Hudson, 1973. Prioreschi, Plinio. A History of Medicine. Vol. 2. Nebraska: Horatius Press, 1996. Ramsey, W.M. Anatolica Quaedam. The Journal of Hellenic Studies 50 (1930): 263-287. Seidel, Kathleen. "Sekanjabin." Serving the Guest: A Sufi Cookbook & Art Gallery. 2002. Superluminal. Ed. Dave Seidel. Date accessed<http://www.superluminal.com/cookbook/beverages_sekanjabin.html>. Wilkinson, Charles K. "Water, Ice and Glass." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin New Series 1.5 (1943): 175-183. I learned a great deal about oxymel from this paper. It is well-researched and very interesting. I think for a higher grade, a more exhaustive study of ancient materials would be in order. Nevertheless, your group has produced a well-written introduction to the subject.