Dipping my toe into the waters of 18th-century beauty manuals and to no surprise books of secrets are still being printed. One book that I find in many of my research digs is the English translation of Toilette de Flore by Pierre-Joseph Buc’hoz. When I searched for information on Buc’hoz there was very little information … More 18th-century Beauty: Toilet of Flora
This blog post is dedicated to the digital exhibition on Apothecaries from Harvard University (https://collections.countway.harvard.edu/onview/exhibits/show/apothecary-jars/sequence). Apothecaries were a branch of the tripartite medical system of apothecary-surgeon-physician which arose in Europe in the early-modern period. Well established as a profession by the seventeenth century, the apothecaries were chemists, mixing and selling their own medicines. They sold … More 18th-Century Apothecaries
There are many recipes from Italian ‘books of secrets’ (e.g. Isabella Cortese, Alessio Piemontese, Notandissimi Profumi) and from still room manuals that require acqua rosa or rosewater. If you want to make this at home there are two methods that I have tried and will share with you in this post. Of course, you could … More Make Rosewater or Acqua Rosa at Home
The spread of the Covid-19 virus has triggered an epidemic of advice. This advice is important, but it seems destined to make our lives more miserable and isolated. However, there is an unusual source of counsel which offers another way to deal with an epidemic. That source is the Decameron. The Italian Renaissance author Giovanni Boccaccio wrote the Decameron in … More Surviving the Corona Virus: Medieval Italian Style
I’ve been experimenting with some of the recipes in the Trotula, a manuscript on women’s medicine that originates from the 12th century, but was copied and used the following centuries. It contains recipes for beauty, hygiene and health. My favorite is recipe #248: “When she combs her hair, let her have this … More 12th-Century Hair Cleanser from Salerno
THL Elska á Fjárfelli has put together some WONDERFUL research on period soapmaking. Read her entire blog post here. Below I’ve pasted some of the basic information from her blog post that pertains to pre 17th-century Italian Peninsula. What is Soap? First things first. To undertake soap making one should be familiar with what soap … More 16th Century Soap Recipes
In living history, we tend to choose, recreate, and portray the highlights of life in the past. Here is just some food for thought about how it really would have been to live there for women who couldn’t just pick and choose which experience they wanted to have. Written by Alexandra Korey Anytime any of … More Being a Woman in Renaissance Italy
My request to attend Terra del Sole has been approved! I wanted to write about my preparation for this event and share all my research into the quattrocento with you. I am attempting to write in both English and Italian so I can share this with the group that is hosting me, La Sparvieri. Let … More Terra del Sole 1387AD – Preparation!
The Italian writer Bartolomeo Sacchi, better known as Platina, composed On Right Pleasure and Good Health (De honesta voluptate et valetudine) in the 1460s, apparently for his friends. It is mostly a cookbook, offering insights into healthy eating and other best practices for taking care of oneself. Early on his work he even provides … More Platina on Italian Renaissance Househunting
“THE ALCHEMIST’S DESIRE”: RECIPES FOR HEALTH AND BEAUTY FROM CATERINA SFORZA 03/03/2015 By Meredith K. Ray In this blog post, I’m presenting material from my forthcoming book Daughters of Alchemy: Women and Scientific Culture in Early Modern Italy (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2015). The material in this post is drawn from Chapter One, “Caterina Sforza’s Experiments with Alchemy,” and Chapter Three, … More Caterina Sforza – The Alchemist
La Bella Donna 