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IMC 2016: Sessions

Session 137: The Animal Turn in Medieval Health Studies, I: Exploitation and Risk - The Animal in Human Health

Monday 4 July 2016, 11.15-12.45

Organiser:Sunny Harrison, Institute for Medieval Studies, University of Leeds
Moderator/Chair:Sunny Harrison, Institute for Medieval Studies, University of Leeds
Paper 137-aRoaming the Streets: Dog Rabies and Animal Health Control in Late Antiquity
(Language: English)
Iuliana Soficaru, Department of Medieval Studies, Central European University, Budapest
Index terms: Medicine, Science, Social History
Paper 137-bSwallow a Frog and Avoid Croaking: Ingesting Poisonous Animals in William of Marra
(Language: English)
Kathleen Walker-Meikle, Department of History, University College London
Index terms: Medicine, Science
Paper 137-cAnimal Health and the Intensification of Draught Exploitation in the Middle Ages
(Language: English)
László Bartosiewicz, Institutionen för arkeologi och antikens kultur, Stockholms universitet
Index terms: Archaeology - General
Abstract

Scholars of medieval medicine have increasingly recognised the position of the animal in studying the health landscape of what was effectively a multi-species society which relied on animals for food, commerce, and agriculture. Medieval people lived in close quarters with their animals; this presented both a risk and an opportunity for exploitation. This session will bring together papers from different contexts to ask: what do medieval sources reveal about the relationship of medieval people with animals, and what steps were taken to mitigate risks and reap potential rewards?