Quiz for the day.

[davywavy]

The Mediaeval Magician/Doctor called Paracelcus once invented a medicine he called the "Weapon Salve". This worked on the principles of sympathetic magic - if a person were harmed by a weapon or similar object, then the weapon would be coated in the salve and bandaged and treated. The power of sympathetic magic would cause the healing opwer of the salve to tranfer itself to the would inflicted, facilitating recovery. If the weapon that inflicted the wound could not be identified or recovered, then another weapon would be touched to the wound and treated accordingly.

Interestingly, injured patients treated in this way would often recover far more quickly - and stand a better chance of recovery from their wounds - than those simply treated in the ordinary fashion. Why was this?

A drink for the first full correct answer.

Comments

[borusa.livejournal.com]

Possibilities...

1) Magnetism. Seems to be a popular idea, personally, think it's rubbish.

2) While they were waving poultices (including "The Hair of a thief" I believe) around the sword, they followed the more traditional remedies of keeping the wound clean and bandaging it.

3) If they heated the weapons before doing the touching, they'd cauterize nicely..

[davywavy.livejournal.com]

If you combine your answer 2, and andy davies theory, you're almost there.

[raggedyman.livejournal.com]

they cleaned up the wound which was more effective than their traditional methord of cramming it full of highly dangerous crap?

Re:

[davywavy.livejournal.com]

oooh, you're so close I bet you can taste it...

*Just being cruel now*

[robinbloke.livejournal.com]

They washed the wound and the weapon in order to clean them, then they both got married and lived happily ever after.

Or... aliens, it was aliens!

Well...

[lanfykins.livejournal.com]

Given that the instructions for the wound were to 'let it alone and keep it clean', and given that at the time other physicians were still using Galen's theories (which got basic anatomy wrong) and attributing illness to the planets... and who was it who treated wounds with boiling pitch?

...anyway, I'm not entirely sure what it is you're looking for, really.

In fact...

[lanfykins.livejournal.com]

Paracelsus demanded that the application of cow dung, feathers and other obnoxious concoctions to wounds be given up in favor of keeping the wounds clean, stating, 'If you prevent infection, Nature will heal the wound all by herself.'

I'm impressed.

You know, I can't help but wonder if the 'sympathetic magic' shit was just there to satisfy other physicians' need to meddle...

Re: In fact...

[davywavy.livejournal.com]

That's good, very good indeed.

The sympathetic magic bit had a purpose though, but you're so close that I may as well post the answer.

[raggedyman.livejournal.com]

Re 3): i was thinking that but couldnt work out why they would do it. sympathetic magic works on things being as similar as possible, not many people go into battle with heated swords and if they do they dont stay hot for long. now it might be part of the healing process but the impression i got was that both they did the healing to the sword after it touched the wound.

Could it be something that was on the sword already having a healing effect? did the oils on it used as an anti rusting agent or actual metals within the sword have benefical properties