It’s a cough and cold remedy fit for a king.
With the current outbreak of cold, flu and Covid sweeping the country, everyone who’s sneezing and snuffling their way through the festive season is looking for a miracle cure.
And there might be one in the National Archives at Kew, where medieval expert Dr Kathryn Maude has unearthed two 15th century prescriptions in the papers of King Henry VI.
One is for soothing a head cold, the other for clearing congestion. ‘Imagine a medieval Vicks VapoRub,’ she says.
The recipes, for a herbal head poultice and a stale ale, mustard seed and nutmeg inhalation, were discovered among miscellaneous items from the Chancery, the king’s writing office.
Dr Maude says: ‘Basically, if the king had had email, the Chancery would have served as his inbox and his ‘sent’ items.
‘I spotted a catalogue entry marked Medieval Cold Remedy and thought, ‘I have to see this!’
What’s fascinating is the inclusion of nutmeg in the decongestant. This shows that the spice was ubiquitous in medieval England, despite being grown 8,000 miles away in Indonesia.
Medieval expert Dr Kathryn Maude has unearthed two 15th century prescriptions in the papers of King Henry VI
The cold and flu remedy from the 1450’s found by Dr Kathryn Maude at the National Archives
And ‘stale ale’ was not as odd as it sounds, for it meant aged, strong, top-quality ale, rather than ale that had gone off. As for mustard, it is linked by today’s herbal medicine fans with lung health.
The poultice for a feverish head asks for a mix of camomile, sage wood, betony and wild purslane, which are all native to the UK and would have been commonly found.
Dr Maude says: ‘You’d make them into a poultice and put it on the top of your head. Poultices were a common part of medieval medicine. I guess this would be like using a hot water bottle.’
Dr Philippa Kaye tries the remedy out for herself…
It isn’t every day I use my kitchen to cook up a medieval home remedy, but some old wives’ tales do have a pinch of truth along with the herbs.
Old recipes aren’t always the easiest to decipher, so I hope I got it right by adding equal parts mustard seed to the vintage ale before heating it up with grated nutmeg and pouring it into a glass.
The glass then sat inside the pan of boiling water.
It smelled rather pungent, to say the least.
The combination of the steam with the mustard definitely felt like it might clear your sinuses, though it also made my eyes stream and seemed to give me a headache.
The benefits of steam inhalation are well known: it helps loosen mucus in the nose and sinuses, eases a sore throat and hoarseness, although you can achieve these effects over a bowl or pan of hot water.
Dr Phillipa decided to put the remedy to the test and try it for herself
Dr Phillipa said that although the combination of the steam with the mustard definitely felt like it might clear your sinuses, it also made her eyes stream and seemed to give her a headache
Mustard seeds, or rather the oils in them, have traditionally been thought to have a decongestant effect, similar perhaps to eucalyptus or menthol, but there is little evidence that they are effective.
It’s also important to be careful with boiling water around children and pets, and I would avoid using herbs and remedies without first checking with a pharmacist in case you have any contra-indications.
If you do have a viral upper respiratory illness, then steam inhalation can be a good idea, plus plenty of fluids and simple painkillers like paracetamol if needed.
As for the ale, perhaps the concoction was later used as the basis for a stew. Mine went down the sink – I think I’d rather stick to simple steam inhalation in future.
