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Darrera modificació: 2017-12-11
Bases de dades: Sciència.cat

Riha, Ortrun, "Das Wasser in der mittelalterlichen Naturkunde und Medizin", dins: Huber-Rebenich, Gerlinde - Rohr, Christian - Stolz, Michael (eds.), Wasser in der mittelalterlichen Kultur: Gebrauch - Wahrnehmung - Symbolik = Water in Medieval Culture: Uses, Perceptions, and Symbolism, Berlín, De Gruyter (Das Mittelalter: Perspektiven mediävistischer Forschung, 4), 2017, pp. 36-56.

Resum

Medieval natural history describes different sorts of waters (running, stagnant, smelly, coloured) and many species of marine animals. Water is of great importance in folk customs relevant to fertility. In medieval natural philosophy and medicine, water is one of the four elements and has the primary qualities of being cold and moist. These qualities are also attributed to the female sex, to childhood, to the phlegmatic type, the colour white, the night, the north, winter, and - last but not least - to foods and drugs, thus providing the basis for rational dietetics and therapy. Healing springs supply water as remedy. On the other hand, the example of dropsy shows the potential dangerousness of water in the body.

Matèries

Medicina
Filosofia - Filosofia natural

URL

https:/​/​doi.org/​10.1515/​9783110437430-003