Plague doctor costume facts for kids

A 1656 engraving of Dr. Schnabel ("Beak") of Rome. He is wearing protective clothing which plague doctors in Rome usually wore at the time.

Johann Melchior Füssli's engraving of a plague doctor of Marseille. His nose-case is filled with smoking material to keep off the plague. This engraving was made c. 1721.

The plague doctor's costume was the clothes worn by a plague doctor to protect him from diseases spread through the air. The costume was made up of a coat which went down to the ankles and a mask. The mask looked like a bird's beak. The beak was often filled with things which smelled sweet or strong (often lavender). Along with this, gloves, boots, a hat and something else to go over the jacket was worn.

Description

The beak was held in front of the doctor's nose by straps. There were two holes in the mask, filled with glass at eye level, so that the doctor could see properly. The mask had two smaller holes for the doctor to breathe. It was a type of respirator which was often filled with strong, nice smelling things. Dried flowers (such as roses and carnations), herbs (such as mint), spices, camphor or a vinegar sponge could all be placed in the beak. The mask was supposed to keep away bad smells. At that time, it was thought that bad smells caused infection. Doctors believed the herbs would take away the "evil" smells of the plague and stop them from getting it.

The costume had a wide brimmed leather hood to show that they were doctors. They used wooden canes to point out areas needing medical attention. This was also used to look at patients without touching them. The canes were also used to keep people away, to take clothes off plague victims without having to touch them and to take a patient's pulse.

Wearing these clothes actually helped make sure that the doctors were not infected by fleas or rats. Fleas could not bite through the leather jacket and infected people could not touch the doctor, which was also because of his leather jacket.

History

Some modern writers have said that fourteenth-century plague doctors wore masks which looked like birds. However, medical historians say that the plague doctor costume was invented by Charles de Lorme. In 1619 he used the idea of full head-to-toe protective clothing. It was modelled after a soldier's armour. This was made up of a bird-like mask and a long leather (Moroccan or Levantine) or waxed-canvas gown. The gown went from the neck to the ankles. The clothing which went on top of the gown, as well as leggings, gloves, boots and a hat, were made of waxed leather. The garment was impregnated with similar fragrant items as the beak mask.

This poem was written in the seventeenth century. It describes the plague doctor's costume.

As may be seen on picture here,

In Rome the doctors do appear,

When to their patients they are called,

In places by the plague appalled,

Their hats and cloaks, of fashion new,

Are made of oilcloth, dark of hue,

Their caps with glasses are designed,

Their bills with antidotes all lined,

That foulsome air may do no harm,

Nor cause the doctor man alarm,

The staff in hand must serve to show

Their noble trade where'er they go.

Jean-Jacques Manget, in his 1721 book Treatise on the Plague, written just after the Great Plague of Marseille, talks about the costumes that plague doctors wore at Nijmegen in 1636-1637. A picture of the costume is at the front of the book. The plague doctors of Nijmegen also wore beaked masks. Their robes, leggings, hats, and gloves were made of morocco leather.

This costume was also worn by plague doctors during the Plague of 1656. This plague killed 145,000 people in Rome and 300,000 in Naples. The costume made people very scared because it was a sign that they would die soon.

Culture

The costume was worn by a commedia dell'arte character called Il Medico della Peste (the Plague Doctor). He wears a special plague doctor's mask. The Venetian mask was normally white. It was made up of a beak and round eye-holes. The eye-holes were covered with clear glass. It is one of the most unique masks worn during the Carnival of Venice.

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• Nohl, Johannes, The Black Death: A Chronicle of the Plague, J. & J. Harper Edition 1969, Library of Congress No. 79-81867
• Manget, Jean-Jacques, Traité de la peste recueilli des meilleurs auteurs anciens et modernes, Geneva, 1721, online as PDF, 28Mb download
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• Time-Life Books, What life was like in the age of chivalry: medieval Europe, AD 800-1500, 1997
• Walker, Kenneth, The story of medicine , Oxford University Press, 1955

Images for kids

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  Plague doctor outfit from Germany (17th century)

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  A beaked Venetian carnival mask bearing a picture of a plague doctor, and the inscription Medico della Peste ("Plague doctor") beneath the right eye