Ancient Roman Medicines

Home | Category: Education, Health, Infrastructure and Transportation

votive plaque

Romans took medicinal tablets made from soil and goat's blood. Frankincense was used as a treatment for cuts and bleeding. Bull urine and sulphur were described as a remedy for dandruff and hair loss. For headache relief Pliny the Elder advised people to crush snails and apply them to the forehead; to rub ointments into the nostrils made of vulture brains; and eat boiled owl brains and rub the temples with a rope used in a suicide. He also reported that "ashes of seahorse...mixed with toad and pig's large" cured baldness.

The Romans regarded honey as a medicine and drank coriander mixed with honey as a remedy for childbirth fever. Eye and skin diseases were treated with a mixture of crushed lead oxide, water, rock salt, and sodium carbonates, Water that had feet washed in it was considered a remedy for stomach aches. In addition to medicines Galen made cold cream from white wax melted with olive oil, rose buds, and lanolin from sheep's wool.

Medicines based on ancient Roman recipes were use in Italy until fairly recently. An acid from willow leaves, the source of aspirin, was as a pain reliever. Formic acid taken from red ants was used as a disinfectant. Greeks and Romans used mosquito netting.

Cato the Elder wrote in “De Agricultura”: “For gripes, for loose bowels, for tapeworms and stomach-worms, if troublesome: Take 30 acid pomegranates, crush, place in a jar with 3 congii of strong black wine, and seal the vessel. Thirty days later open and use. Drink a hemina before eating. [Source: Cato the Elder, “De Agricultura”, Loeb Classical Library, 1934] “Remedy for dyspepsia and strangury: Gather pomegranate blossoms when they open, and place 3 minae of them in an amphora. Add one quadrantal of old wine and a mina of clean crushed root of fennel; seal the vessel and thirty days later open and use. You may drink this as freely as you wish without risk, when you wish to digest your food and to urinate. The same wine will clear out tapeworms and stomach-worms if it is blended in this way. Bid the patient refrain from eating in the evening, and the next morning macerate 1 drachm of pulverized incense, 1 drachm of boiled honey, and a sextarius of wine of wild marjoram. Administer to him before he eats, and, for a child, according to age, a triobolus91º and a hemina. Have him climb a pillar and jump down ten times, and walk about.”

Ancient Roman Treatments for Headaches, Acne and Warts

Michael Van Duisen wrote for Listverse: “Acne was probably the scourge of nearly every Roman teenager, so the Romans tried to come up with a cure. Crocodile meat was effective at getting rid of spots, even freckles, when combined with cyprus oil. If the pimples persisted, the Romans suggested taking a bath with oil and sour cheese to remove the pimples. Leek leaves could get rid of pimples when rubbed on the skin. Lastly, the juice of myrrh, when mixed with cassia and honey, was said to be effective at relieving what the Romans referred to as varus. If all of that failed to rid one’s face of acne, the court physician of Theodosius, a Roman emperor in the fourth century, told his patients to wipe their faces with a cloth while watching a falling star. For unspecified reasons, this was said to cause the pimples to fall off the face. [Source: Michael Van Duisen, Listverse, April 11, 2016 |=|]

“Warts had a wide range of cures. Often, Romans would burn cow dung, mouse dung, or the fat of a swan to rid themselves of warts. Pliny suggested taking a freshly podded pea and touching it to each nodule. Then he instructed his readers to wrap the peas securely in a cloth and throw them backward. Rubbing the wart with sea foam or white sea sand was also supposed to work. If the person could afford it, gold was considered to be an effective remedy for warts. However, if a Roman couldn’t get any of these cures, he could wait until after the 20th day of the month, lie faceup on a path, look at the Moon, grab whatever was nearby, and rub it on the wart. |=|

“Headaches: There were a number of cures for headaches, most of which involved animals in some way. For example, wine in which a chameleon had been soaked could be sprinkled on the sufferer’s head. If that failed, an elephant’s trunk could be touched to the head. (It was considered much more effective if the elephant sneezed.) A Roman could also drink the water left behind by an ox or ass which had been drinking it. A liniment made from burned cloth which had been stained with menstrual blood and mixed with the oil of roses was said to be an effective cure. As a last resort, the severed genitals of a fox could be fastened around the head to cure a stubborn headache.” |=|

Ancient Roman Treatments for Constipation, Nausea and Flatulence

Pythagorian solution for flatulence: don't eat beans

Michael Van Duisen wrote for Listverse: “Constipation: When the ancient Romans had trouble going to the bathroom, there were a number of cures from which to choose. For example, eating raw quinces preserved in honey could help.Placing wolf’s gall (bile) on the navel with different kinds of milk, salt, and honey could also be effective at loosening the bowels. For those who didn’t like the idea of a wolf’s gall resting on their navel, a bull’s gall could be smashed up with wormwood and applied as a suppository. Fresh beets that were ground into juice were also beneficial for constipation sufferers. Oddly enough, this remedy was also supposed to work for those afflicted with diarrhea. Almost every kind of fruit was said to be good as well. Finally, men like Cato the Elder prescribed cabbage as a great treatment for constipation and a multitude of other ailments. [Source: Michael Van Duisen, Listverse, April 11, 2016 |=|]

“Nausea: For those suffering from nausea—whether from natural causes or as a reaction to one of the Romans’ many “cures”—a three-finger pinch of cumin was said to work wonders. Pennyroyal, a common herb in Europe, was also said to help if it was cooked in vinegar. Rose juice could be effective, although the Roman might fall into a deep sleep because it was also a cure for insomnia. Oddly enough, the ancient Romans believed that drinking lots of wine was a cure for nausea. (They had a cure for the next day’s nasty hangover, too.) However, a Roman woman who was pregnant and feeling nauseous was supposed to eat a pomegranate or drink its juice. As a last resort, human breast milk could be used to cure nausea. It was supposed to be especially effective if the woman had already weaned her child—and doubly so if she had given birth to a boy. |=|

“Flatulence was a common side effect of many Roman “cures” and could be treated through a variety of methods. Chicken broth was said to be an excellent purgative for the bowels. If it was made from an old rooster and strongly salted, it was even more effective. A hen’s white droppings were also beneficial for those suffering from uncontrollable flatulence. When mixed with cobbler’s blacking, basil supposedly eased ferocious flatulence. However, if this cure was used too frequently, it could result in madness or put the patient into a coma. Pliny also said that mixing cumin and asparagus was helpful, although this cure often caused other unspecified problems. As a last resort, ground beaver meat with vinegar and rose oil could be used as long as it was in liquid form. If eaten, it was for epilepsy.” |=|

Ancient Roman Medical Treatments for Dysentery, Gout and Epilepsy

Michael Van Duisen wrote for Listverse: “Dysentery is caused by any number of bacteria, viruses, or parasites. It inflames the colon and results in diarrhea with blood for the sufferer. However, in ancient Rome, they didn’t know the cause of this disease, so the cures were quite far-fetched. Chicken soup was considered to be a cure. Bitumen, a native asphalt of Asia Minor, was also supposed to work. Bitumen could also hasten menstruation for women. The flesh of a spotted lizard was also an effective cure. But it had to be imported from a foreign country and boiled before it was eaten. The actual type of lizard was not recorded. Egg yolks without the whites could be mixed with poppy juice and wine. The flowers of pomegranates, a wonder drug in ancient Rome, could be picked and eaten to cure dysentery. Also, vomited blood was supposed to work if it was mixed with wine and a vulture’s lungs. [Source: Michael Van Duisen, Listverse, April 11, 2016 |=|]

Egyptian migraine therapy

“Incontinence could be cured by taking the bladder of a hyena, soaking it in wine, and eating it. Roasted boar’s bladder was supposed to be quite effective as well. If you could catch them, roasted seahorses were a common cure for incontinence. A smaller fish that was found inside a larger fish’s belly was also a good cure. If the sufferer was a child, Pliny suggested that they eat boiled mice with their food. Maybe the oddest cure was taking papyrus or linen and touching it to the tip of one’s genitals. If that failed, tying a string of linen or papyrus around the genitals and then around the leg might do the trick. Stranger still, incontinence could be cured by burning a pig’s penis, mixing it with wine, and drinking the concoction. Then, while the Roman was drunk from “swine wine,” he had to pee in the bed of a dog while saying the following in Latin: “This I do that I may not wet my bed as a dog does.” |=|

“Gout, a recurrent attack of acute inflammatory arthritis, could be cured in a number of ways. The combination of mustard, saffron, the fat of a male goat, and the dung of a female goat was supposed to be effective at alleviating the symptoms. Rubbing a sea hare along the affected parts and wearing shoes made of beaver’s skin was also prescribed. The skin of what Pliny described as the “Pontic beaver” was supposed to be the most effective. Pliny also believed that the touch of a menstruating woman could relieve the symptoms. Calf dung boiled with lily bulbs was believed to be a useful cure as well. One of the sadder cures was the use of a live fox that was tied to a stake and boiled in oil. It was supposed to make an effective drink to cure gout. |=|

“Epilepsy: Although epilepsy is still challenging to treat in modern times, the ancient Romans believed that they had a number of successful remedies. For example, an affected Roman could drink water that was taken from a spring during the night and then placed in the skull of a dead man. The next step was to eat the flesh of a beast that had been killed with an iron weapon. The weapon must have killed a man previously. If all of that failed, putting an iron nail into the ground where someone had suffered a seizure was supposed to help. The testes of a bear or wild boar dipped in mare’s milk or water was considered to be a highly effective treatment. The smell of the afterbirth of a female ass, especially if it had just borne a male, was beneficial to those who were about to have a seizure. However, this was neither a practical nor timely solution. If nothing else worked, the affected Roman could take a dried camel’s brain, put it in vinegar, and eat it.” |=|

Spiderwed Bandages and Urine Mouthwash

a phallic pendant, one Roman way to keep disease away

The Romans used bandages made of spider webs. Andrew Handley wrote for Listverse: “The book Military Medicine: From Ancient Times to the 21st Century discusses how medics in the Roman army would often bandage wounds by using a mixture of cobwebs, honey, and vinegar. It’s only very recently that we’ve even begun to look into using spider silk as a medical aid—and Romans were doing it thousands of years ago. By weight and tensile strength, spider silk is stronger than steel and could possess antibacterial properties. These guys were geniuses.: [Source: Andrew Handley, Listverse, February 8, 2013]

Mark Oliver wrote for Listverse: “In ancient Rome, pee was such big business that the government had special taxes in place just for urine sales. There were people who made their living just from collecting urine. Some would gather it at public urinals. Others went door-to-door with a big vat and asked people to fill it up. [Source: Mark Oliver, Listverse, August 23, 2016]

“The ways they used it are the last ones you’d expect. For example, they’d clean their clothes in pee. Workers would fill a tub full of clothing and pee, and then one poor soul would be sent in to stomp all over the clothing to wash it out.

“Which is nothing compared to how they cleaned their teeth. In some areas, people used urine as a mouthwash, which they claimed kept their teeth shining white. In fact, there’s a Roman poem that survives today in which a poet mocks his clean-toothed enemy by saying, “The fact that your teeth are so polished just shows you’re the more full of piss.”

Gladiator Blood Medicine

Romans believed that the blood of a slain gladiator could cure epilepsy. In some cases, after a gladiator was killed and his body removed from the arena, the blood was quickly collected and sold still-warm by vendors. After gladiatorial combat was outlawed around A.D. 400, people began using the blood of executed criminals for the same cure. [Source: Andrew Handley, Listverse, February 8, 2013]

dying gladiator

Mark Oliver wrote for Listverse: “Several Roman authors report people gathering the blood of dead gladiators and selling it as a medicine. The Romans apparently believed that gladiator blood had the power to cure epilepsy and would drink it as a cure. And that was just the civilized approach—others would pull out the gladiators’ livers and eat them raw. [Source: Mark Oliver, Listverse, August 23, 2016]

“This was so popular that when Rome banned gladiatorial combat, people kept the treatment going by drinking the blood of decapitated prisoners. Strangely, some Roman physicians actually report that this treatment worked. They claim to have seen people who drank human blood recover from their epileptic fits.

Image Sources: Wikimedia Commons

Text Sources: Internet Ancient History Sourcebook: Rome sourcebooks.fordham.edu ; Internet Ancient History Sourcebook: Late Antiquity sourcebooks.fordham.edu ; “Outlines of Roman History” by William C. Morey, Ph.D., D.C.L. New York, American Book Company (1901) ; “The Private Life of the Romans” by Harold Whetstone Johnston, Revised by Mary Johnston, Scott, Foresman and Company (1903, 1932); BBC Ancient Rome bbc.co.uk/history/ ; Project Gutenberg gutenberg.org ; Metropolitan Museum of Art, National Geographic, Smithsonian magazine, New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Live Science, Discover magazine, Archaeology magazine, Reuters, Associated Press, The Guardian, AFP, The New Yorker, Wikipedia, Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopedia.com and various other books, websites and publications.

Last updated November 2024