TWENTY-TWO REMEDIES DERIVED FROM EGGS

Latine · Mayhoff 1906

Lanae habent et cum ovis societatem simul fronti inpositae contra epiphoras. non opus est eas in hoc usu radicula esse curatas neque aliud quam candidum ex ovo infundi ac pollinem turis.

Ova per se infuso candido oculis epiphoras cohibent urentesque refrigerant—quidam cum croco praeferunt— et pro aqua miscentur collyriis; infantibus vero contra lippitudines, ut vix aliud, remedio sunt butyro admixto recenti. eadem cum oleo trita ignes sacros leniunt betae foliis superinligatis. candido ovorum in oculis et pili reclinantur Hammoniaco trito admixtoque et vari in facie cum pineis nucleis ac melle modico. ipsa facies inlita sole non uritur. ambusta aquis si statim ovo occupentur, pusulas non sentiunt—quidam admiscent farinam hordeaciam et salis parum—, ulceribus vero ex ambusto cum candido ovorum tostum hordeum et suillo adipe mire prodest. eadem curatione ad sedis vitia utuntur, infantibus quidem etiam si quid ibi procidat; ad pedum rimas ovorum candido decocto cum cerussae denariorum II pondere, pari spumae argenti, murrae exiguo, dein vino; ad ignem sacrum candido ovorum ternum cum amylo. aiunt et vulnera candido glutinari calculosque pelli. —Lutea ovorum cocta, ut indurescant, admixto croco modice, item melle, ex lacte mulieris inlita dolores oculorum mitigant, vel cum rosaceo et mulso lana oculis inposita, vel cum trito apii semine ac polenta in mulso inlita. prodest et tussientibus per se luteum devoratum liquidum ita, ut dentibus non attingatur, thoracis destillationibus, faucium scabritiae. privatim contra haemorrhoidas morsui inlinitur sorbeturque crudum. prodest et renibus, vesicae rosionibus exulcerationibusque. cruenta excreantibus v ovorum lutea in vini hemina cruda sorbentur, dysintericis cum cinere putaminis sui et papaveris suco ac vino. dantur coeliacis cum uvae passae pinguis pari pondere et malicorii per triduum aequis portionibus, et alio modo lutea ovorum III, lardi veteris et mellis quadrantibus, vini veteris cyathis III, trita ad crassitudinem mellis et, cum opus sit, abellanae nucis magnitudine ex aqua pota, item ex oleo fricta terna, totis ovis pridie maceratis in aceto; sic et lientericis, sanguinem autem reicientibus cum III cyathis musti. utuntur isdem ad liventia, si vetustiora sint, cum bulbis ac melle. sistunt et menses mulierum cocta et e vino pota, inflationes quoque vulvae cruda cum oleo ac vino inlita. utilia sunt et cervicis doloribus cum anserino adipe et rosaceo, sedis etiam vitiis indurata igni, ut calore quoque prosint, et condylomatis cum rosaceo; item ambustis durata in aqua, mox in pruna putaminibus exustis, tum lutea ex rosaceo inlinuntur. fiunt et tota lutea, quae vocant sitista, cum triduo incubita tolluntur. stomachum dissolutum confirmant pulli ovorum cum gallae dimidio ita, ne ante II horas alius cibus sumatur. dant et dysintericis pullos in ipso ovo decoctos admixta vini austeri hemina et pari modo olei polentaeque.—Membrana putamini detracta sive crudo sive cocto labrorum fissuris medetur, putaminis cinis in vino potus sanguinis eruptionibus. comburi sine membrana oportet. sic fit et dentifricium. idem cinis et mulierum menses cum murra inlitus sistit. firmitas putaminum tanta est, ut recta nec vi nec pondere ullo frangantur nec nisi paulum inflexa rotunditate.— Tota ova adiuvant partum cum ruta et aneto et cumino pota e vino. scabiem corporum ac pruritum oleo et cedria mixtis tollunt, ulcera quoque umida in capite cyclamino admixta. ad puris et sanguinis excreationes ovum crudum cum porri sectivi suco parique mensura mellis Graeci calefactum hauritur. dantur et tussientibus cocta et trita cum melle et cruda cum passo oleique pari modo. infunduntur et virilitatis vitiis singula cum ternis cyathis passi amylique semuncia a balneis; adversus ictus serpentium cocta tritaque adiecto nasturtio inlinuntur.— Cibo quot modis iuvent, notum est, cum transmeent faucium tumorem calfactuque obiter foveant. nullus est alius cibus, qui in aegritudine alat neque oneret simulque vim potus et cibi habeat. maceratorum in aceto molliri diximus putamen; talibus cum farina in panem subactis coeliaci recreantur. quidam ita resoluta in patinis torrere utilius putant, quo genere non alvos tantum, sed et menses feminarum sistunt, aut, si maior sit impetus, cruda cum farina et aqua hauriuntur. et per se Iutea ex iis decocuntur in aceto, donec indurescant, iterumque cum trito pipere torrentur ad cohibendas alvos. fit et dysintericis remedium singulare ovo effuso in fictile novum eiusdemque ovi mensura, ut paria sint omnia, melle, mox aceto, item oleo confusis crebroque permixtis; quo fuerint ea excellentiora, hoc praesentius remedium erit. alii eadem mensura pro oleo et aceto resinam adiciunt rubentem vinumque; et alio modo temperant, olei tantum mensura pari pineique corticis II sexagensimis denarii, una eius quod rhum diximus, mellis obolis v simul decoctis, ita ut cibus alius post IIII horas sumatur. torminibus quoque multi medentur ova bina cum alii spicis IIII una terendo vinique hemina calefaciendo atque ita potui dando. et, ne quid desit ovorum gratiae, candidum ex iis admixtum calci vivae glutinat vitri fragmenta; vis vero tanta est, ut lignum perfusum ovo non ardeat ac ne vestis quidem contacta aduratur. de gallinarum autem ovis tantum locuti sumus, cum et reliquarum alitum restent, magnae utilitatis, sicut suis locis dicemus.

Praeterea est ovorum genus in magna fama Galliarum, omissum Graecis. angues enim numerose convoluti salivis faucium corporumque spumis artifici conplexu glomerant; urinum appellatur. Druidae sibilis id dicunt in sublime iactari sagoque oportere intercipi, ne tellurem attingat; profugere raptorem equo, serpentes enim insequi, donec arceantur amnis alicuius interventu; experimentum eius esse, si contra aquas fluitet vel auro vinctum; atque, ut est Magorum sollertia occultandis fraudibus sagax, certa luna capiendum censent, tamquam congruere operationem eam serpentium humani sit arbitrii. vidi equidem id ovum mali orbiculati modici magnitudine, crusta cartilagineis velut acetabulis bracchiorum polypi crebris insigne. Druidis ad victorias litium ac regum aditus mire laudatur, tantae vanitatis, ut habentem id in lite in sinu equitem R. e Vocontiis a divo Claudio principe interemptum non ob aliud sciam. hic tamen conplexus anguium et frugifera eorum concordia in causa videtur esse, quare exterae gentes caduceum in pacis argumentis circumdata effigie anguium fecerint; neque enim cristatos esse in caduceo mos est.

De anserum ovis magnae utilitatis ipsoque ansere dicturi hoc in volumine debemus honorem et Commageno, clarissimae rei. fit ex adipe anserum—alioqui celeberrimi usus, set ad hoc in Commagene Syriae parte —cum cinnamo, casia, pipere albo, herba quae Commagene vocatur, obrutis nive vasis, odore iucundo, utilissimum ad perfrictiones, convulsiones, caecos aut subitos dolores omniaque, quae acopis curantur, unguentumque pariter et medicamentum est. fit et in Syria alio modo, avium adipe curato ut dicemus, additis erysisceptro, xylobalsamo, phoenice, item tuso calamo singulorum pondere quod sit adipis, in vino bis aut ter subfervefacto. fit autem hieme, quoniam aestate non glaciat nisi accepta cera. multa praeterea remedia sunt ex ansere, quod miror aeque quam in capris, namque anser corvusque ab aestate in autumnum morbo conflictari dicuntur.

English · Bostock & Riley 1855–57

There is a considerable affinity also between wool and eggs, which are applied together as a frontal to the forehead by way of cure for defluxions of the eyes. Wool, however, is not required for this purpose to have been dressed with radicula, the only thing requisite to be combined with it being the white of an egg and powdered frankincense. The white of an egg, also applied by itself, arrests defluxions of the eyes, and has a cooling effect upon inflammations of those organs: some, however, prefer mixing saffron with it, and employ it as an ingredient in eye-salves, in place of water. For ophthalmia in infants there is hardly any remedy to be found, except white of egg mixed with fresh butter. Eggs beaten up with oil, are very soothing for erysipelas, beet leaves being laid on the liniment.

White of egg, mixed with pounded gum ammoniac, is used as a bandoline for arranging the hairs of the eyelids; and, in combination with pine-nuts and a little honey, it forms a liniment for the removal of pimples on the face. If the face is well rubbed with it, it will never be sun-burnt. If, the moment the flesh has been scalded, an egg is applied, no blisters will form: some persons, however, mix with it barley-meal and a little salt. In cases of ulceration formed by burns, there is nothing better than parched barley and hogs’ lard, mixed with the white of an egg. The same mixture is also used as an application for diseases of the rectum, in infants even, and in cases, too, when there is procidence of those parts. For the cure of chaps upon the feet, white of eggs is boiled, with two denarii of white lead, an equal quantity of litharge, a little myrrh, and some wine. For the cure of erysipelas they use the whites of three eggs with amylum: it is said, too, that white of egg has the effect of knitting wounds and of expelling urinary calculi. The yolk of eggs boiled hard, applied in woman’s milk with a little saffron and honey, has a soothing effect upon pains in the eyes. The yolk is applied also to the eyes in wool, mixed with honied wine and oil of roses: or else mixed with ground parsley-seed and polenta, and applied with honied wine. The yolk of a single egg, swallowed raw by itself without being allowed to touch the teeth, is remarkably good for cough, defluxions of the chest, and irritations of the fauces. It is used, too, both internally and externally, in a raw state, as a sovereign cure for the sting of the hæmorrhoïs; and it is highly beneficial for the kidneys, for irritations and ulcerations of the bladder, and for bloody expectorations. For dysentery, the yolks of five eggs are taken raw in one semi-sextarius of wine, mixed with the ashes of the shells, poppy-juice, and wine.

For cœliac fluxes, it is recommended to take the yolks of eggs, with like proportions of pulpy raisins and pomegranate rind, in equal quantities, for three consecutive days; or else to follow another method, and take the yolks of three eggs, with three ounces of old bacon and honey, and three cyathi of old wine; the whole being beaten up to the consistency of honey, and taken in water, when needed, in pieces the size of a hazel nut. In some cases, too, the yolks of three eggs are fried in oil, the whole of the egg having been steeped a day previously in vinegar. It is in this way that eggs are used for the treatment of spleen diseases; but for spitting of blood, they should be taken with three cyathi of must. Yolk of egg is used, too, for the cure of bruises of long standing, in combination with bulbs and honey. Boiled and taken in wine, yolks of eggs arrest menstruation: applied raw with oil or wine, they dispel inflations of the uterus. Mixed with goose-grease and oil of roses, they are useful for crick in the neck; and they are hardened over the fire, and applied warm, for the cure of maladies of the rectum. For condylomata, eggs are used in combination with oil of roses; and for the treatment of burns, they are hardened in water, and set upon hot coals till the shells are burnt, the yellow being used as a liniment with oil of roses.

Eggs become entirely transformed into yolk, on being removed after the hen has sat upon them for three days; in which state they are known by the name of “sitista.” The chicks that are found within the shell are used for strengthening a disordered stomach, being eaten with half a nut-gall, and no other food taken for the next two hours. They are given also for dysentery, boiled in the egg with one semi-sextarius of astringent wine, and an equal quantity of olive oil and polenta. The pellicle that lines the shell is used, either raw or boiled, for the cure of cracked lips; and the shell itself, reduced to ashes, is taken in wine for discharges of blood: care must be taken, however, to burn it without the pellicle. In the same way, too, a dentifrice is prepared. The ashes of the shell, applied topically with myrrh, arrest menstruation when in excess. So remarkably strong is the shell of an egg, that if it is set upright, no force or weight can break it, unless a slight inclination be made to one side or other of the circumference. Eggs taken whole in wine, with rue, dill, and cummin, facilitate parturition. Used with oil and cedar-resin, they remove itch and prurigo, and, applied in combination with cyclaminos, they are remedial for running ulcers of the head. For purulent expectorations and spitting of blood, a raw egg is taken, warmed with juice of cut-leek and an equal quantity of Greek honey. For coughs, eggs are administered, boiled and beaten up with honey, or else raw, with raisin wine and an equal quantity of olive oil. For diseases of the male organs, an injection is made, of an egg, three cyathi of raisin wine, and half an ounce of amylum, the mixture being used immediately after the bath. Where injuries have been inflicted by serpents, boiled eggs are used as a liniment, beaten up with nasturtium.

In what various ways eggs are used as food is well known to all, passing downwards, however swollen the throat may be, and warming the parts as they pass. Eggs, too, are the only diet which, while it affords nutriment in sickness, does not load the stomach, possessing at the same moment all the advantages both of food and drink. We have already stated, that the shell of an egg becomes soft when steeped in vinegar: it is by the aid of eggs thus prepared, and kneaded up with meal into bread, that patients suffering from the cœliac flux are often restored to strength. Some, however, think it a better plan to roast the eggs, when thus softened, in a shallow pan; a method, by the aid of which, they arrest not only looseness of the bowels, but excessive menstruation as well. In cases, again, where the discharges are greatly in excess, eggs are taken raw, with meal, in water. The yolks, too, are employed alone, boiled hard in vinegar and roasted with ground pepper, when wanted to arrest diarrhœa.

For dysentery, there is a sovereign remedy, prepared in the following manner: an egg is emptied into a new earthen vessel, which done, in order that all the proportions may be equal, fill the shell, first with honey, then with oil, and then with vinegar; beat them up together, and thoroughly incorporate them: the better the quality of the several ingredients, the more efficacious the mixture will be. Others, again, instead of oil and vinegar, use the same proportions of red resin and wine. There is also another way of making up this preparation: the proportion of oil, and of that only, remains the same, and to it they add two sixtieth parts of a denarius of the vegetable which we have spoken of under the name of “rhus,” and five oboli of honey. All these ingredients are boiled down together, and no food is eaten by the patient till the end of four hours after taking the mixture. Many persons, too, have a cure for griping pains in the bowels, by beating up two eggs with four cloves of garlick, and administering them, warmed in one semi-sextarius of wine.

Not to omit anything in commendation of eggs, I would here add that glair of egg, mixed with quicklime, unites broken glass. Indeed, so great is the efficacy of the substance of an egg, that wood dipped in it will not take fire, and cloth with which it has come in contact will not ignite. On this occasion, however, it is only of the eggs of poultry that I have been speaking, though those of the various other birds as well are possessed of many useful properties, as I shall have to mention on the appropriate occasions.

In addition to the above, there is another kind of egg, held in high renown by the people of the Gallic provinces, but totally omitted by the Greek writers. In summer time, numberless snakes become artificially entwined together, and form rings around their bodies with the viscous slime which exudes from their mouths, and with the foam secreted by them: the name given to this substance is “anguinum.” The Druids tell us, that the serpents eject these eggs into the air by their hissing, and that a person must be ready to catch them in a cloak, so as not to let them touch the ground; they say also that he must instantly take to flight on horseback, as the serpents will be sure to pursue him, until some intervening river has placed a barrier between them. The test of its genuineness, they say, is its floating against the current of a stream, even though it be set in gold. But, as it is the way with magicians to be dexterous and cunning in casting a veil about their frauds, they pretend that these eggs can only be taken on a certain day of the moon; as though, forsooth, it depended entirely upon the human will to make the moon and the serpents accord as to the moment of this operation.

I myself, however, have seen one of these eggs: it was round, and about as large as an apple of moderate size; the shell of it was formed of a cartilaginous substance, and it was surrounded with numerous cupules, as it were, resembling those upon the arms of the polypus: it is held in high estimation among the Druids. The possession of it is marvellously vaunted as ensuring success in law-suits, and a favourable reception with princes; a notion which has been so far belied, that a Roman of equestrian rank, a native of the territory of the Vocontii, who, during a trial, had one of these eggs in his bosom, was slain by the late Emperor Tiberius, and for no other reason, that I know of, but because he was in possession of it. It is this entwining of serpents with one another, and the fruitful results of this unison, that seem to me to have given rise to the usage among foreign nations, of surrounding the caduceus with representations of serpents, as so many symbols of peace—it must be remembered, too, that on the caduceus, serpents are never represented as having crests.

Having to make mention, in the present Book, of the eggs of the goose and the numerous uses to which they are applied, as also of the bird itself, it is our duty to award the honour to Commagene of a most celebrated preparation there made. This composition is prepared from goose-grease, a substance applied to many other well-known uses as well; but in the case of that which comes from Commagene, a part of Syria, the grease is first incorporated with cinnamon, cassia, white pepper, and the plant called “commagene,” and then placed in vessels and buried in the snow. The mixture has an agreeable smell, and is found extremely useful for cold shiverings, convulsions, heavy or sudden pains, and all those affections, in fact, which are treated with the class of remedies known as “acopa;” being equally an unguent and a medicament.

There is another method, also, of preparing it in Syria: the fat of the bird is preserved in manner already described, and there is added to it erysisceptrum, xylobalsamum, palm elate, and calamus, each in the same proportion as the grease; the whole being gently boiled some two or three times in wine. This preparation is made in winter, as in summer it will never thicken, except with the addition of wax. There are numerous other remedies, also, derived from the goose, as well as from the raven; a thing I am much surprised at, seeing that both the goose and the raven are generally said to be in a diseased state at the end of summer and the beginning of autumn.