The Art of Anatomy

Medieval Ideas & the Body

The medieval period in Europe was a time of trouble with many wars disrupting trade and travel. Rulers were more interested in building up defences and maintaining armies than promoting education and developing technology. Much of the knowledge acquired by the Greeks and Romans, including medical practice, was lost. As a result medicine followed some Greek theory but came to rely much more on traditional remedies, folklore and myth. The internal workings of the body were explained not by scientific theories but by the influence of supernatural forces.

Christianity was central to life in Medieval Europe. It had a very big influence on medical practice. The Church set up hospitals and many of its clergy practised as doctors. Christian teaching, though, emphasised God's will. The Lord would make the final decision between healing and suffering, life or death. This attitude did not encourage medicinal study. Christian belief also stressed the sanctity of the body, even after death. The practice of dissection, the cutting open of a body after death, was banned by the Church until the fourteenth century.

Use the information on this page to answer the following questions:

• Name four aspects of civilisation that suffered in medieval Europe due to the prevalence of war?
• What practice was banned by the Church until the fourteenth century?
• Why did the Church disapprove this practice?

This picture of a ‘Zodiac Man', taken from a fourteenth century manuscript, gives us an idea of what doctors believed. They thought that the stars and the planets had a big influence on the body. In the picture zodiacal symbols are painted on the body in the appropriate places, from Aries for the head and face to Pisces for the feet. The signs demonstrate which parts of the body are influenced by which astrological sign, and indicate the best time for performing operations. Often this involved blood letting or cupping.