Buzz
Tales of serial killers consuming their victims' body parts are widely known. As kids, many of us were intrigued by Hollywood's portrayal of cannibals lurking in remote jungles through sensationalized films.
Cannibalism, surprisingly, has been more prevalent throughout history than most realize. For centuries, people have engaged in this practice, often without the societal judgment typically linked to such a taboo.
For hundreds of years, medical cannibalism and even vampirism have been carried out by individuals you'd expect to know better. Royals, clergy, and ordinary people alike partook in these practices, convinced they were serving a higher purpose.
10. Mummy Dust
During the Middle Ages, mummy dust was a widely sought-after remedy across Europe. Imported from Egypt, mummies or their powdered remains were ground into a fine substance. This powder was consumed to treat various ailments, including skin rashes, digestive issues, and even paralysis.
In the Middle East, communities blended mummy dust with butter, using it as a medicinal treatment until the 19th century. The demand for mummies grew so high that the Egyptian government eventually enacted regulations to prevent the sale of mummified ancestors to traders.
9. Gladiator Blood
In ancient Rome, gladiators led harsh and brief lives, battling in arenas to the roars of spectators eager to witness their violent demise.
Some attendees at these events sought to collect the blood of fallen gladiators. They believed that consuming the blood of these strong, fallen warriors would transfer their vigor and power, akin to the mythical rejuvenation vampires experience from drinking human blood.
8. Moss From A Dead Man’s Skull
In medieval times, people not only consumed powdered human skulls but also harvested lichen, known as usnea, from the skulls of deceased soldiers. This lichen was carefully scraped off, dried, ground into powder, and turned into tinctures believed to possess magical healing properties for wounds.
Medieval medicine often relied on sympathetic magic. For instance, powdered heart was ingested to treat heart ailments, while blood, symbolizing life and renewal, was consumed to rejuvenate the body.
The lichen collected from soldiers' skulls was thought to possess miraculous healing powers, even though the soldiers themselves had succumbed to battle wounds. It was believed to magically heal severe injuries.
7. Cured Meat
A 17th-century recipe by German pharmacologist Johann Schroder suggests using the body of a “reddish man” who met a violent end to cure ailments. The body must be exposed to moonlight for a full day and night before the meat is removed from the bones.
The human flesh was coated with myrrh and aloe, then soaked in wine for several days. Once marinated, the strips of meat were hung to cure.
6. The King’s Drops
Cannibalism wasn’t limited to the poor or uneducated; even royalty engaged in it. You might have come across the term “the king’s drops,” a remedy consumed by England’s Charles II to maintain his health.
This concoction cost the king an astonishing 6,000 pounds and involved distilling human skulls into a tincture. Gravediggers in Ireland supplied the skulls, which were crushed and blended into an alcoholic solution that Charles II regularly consumed.
5. Cure For The Elderly
Throughout history, the quest for youth has driven people to extreme measures. In the 15th century, Italian priest Marsilio Ficino suggested drinking blood as a remedy to counteract aging.
He claimed that elderly individuals could rejuvenate themselves by consuming the fresh blood of a healthy, youthful person who had died. The donor should have led a joyful and vigorous life, and the blood must be collected shortly after death, avoiding decomposed corpses.
This practice of medical vampirism has resurfaced multiple times over the centuries, sometimes as a treatment for aging and other times as a remedy for tuberculosis.
4. Skull And Molasses
It’s natural for parents to go to great lengths to heal their children. The instinct to ensure a child’s survival has led some to consider even cannibalism as a desperate measure.
For example, a father was advised to mix crushed human skull from a young woman with molasses and give it to his epileptic daughter as a cure.
The father followed the instructions and administered the unsettling concoction to his daughter. However, he later reported that it had no impact on her epilepsy. This incident occurred in 1847.
3. Pulverized Human Heart
A human heart contains approximately 722 calories—more than a 285-gram (10 oz) steak. Some anthropologists suggest that cannibalism may have been driven by the need to meet caloric requirements.
However, medical cannibalism wasn’t about calories or hunger. It was rooted in superstition. The heart, symbolizing strength, was believed to transfer power to those who consumed it.
In the 1700s, British preacher John Keogh created a recipe for pulverized human heart, intended to cure dizziness and enhance physical strength. Patients were instructed to take this remedy in the morning on an empty stomach.
2. Harvesting The Remainder Of Their Lives
In the past, people believed that consuming the blood of the young would transfer the years the young person lost. This is why the blood of the elderly was considered useless in magical remedies—it lacked the remaining years needed to benefit the drinker.
However, drinking the blood of the young had no effect, even for those on the brink of death.
For example, Pope Innocent VIII, on his deathbed in 1492, had three boys bled to death in an attempt to save him. The Pope drank their blood as medicine, yet he still passed away.
1. Standing At The Scaffold
While it might appear that those closest to the scaffold during a beheading were there for the spectacle, in Denmark, this wasn’t typically the case.
Epileptics often gathered near the scaffold, holding cups to collect the blood of the executed. They believed that the blood of someone whose life was abruptly ended would cure their epilepsy.
