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(BASIC INFORMATION)

the beak doctor;

A plague doctor would have worn a beak doctor costume in his role as a specialized doctor. He was known then as a "Beak Doctor". The protective suit consisted of a heavy fabric overcoat that was waxed, a mask of glassed eye openings and a cone shaped like a beak to hold scented substances. Some of the scented materials were amber, balm-mint leaves, camphor, cloves, laudanum, myrrh, rose petals, and storax. A wooden cane pointer was used to help examine the patient without touching.

It was intended as a protection suit against the contagious plague. This costume had openings for the eyes that were made of glass. It also had a hollow long beak for the nose, which was filled with camphor, garlic, mint, or a sponge of vinegar. This was all to protect the doctor from miasmatic bad air.

methods;

Plague doctors practiced bloodletting and other remedies for "re-balancing the humors" as a normal routine. After plague doctors saw patients they were quarantined for a lengthy period. Plague doctors could not generally interact with the general public because of the nature of their business and the possibility of spreading the disease.

servitude;

Plague doctors served as public servants during times of epidemics starting with the Black Death of Europe in the fourteenth century. Their principal task, besides taking care of plague victims, was to record in public records the deaths due to the plague. They instructed plague patients to be serene and lighthearted and to think of only gold, silver, and other items which were comforting to the heart instead of death.

In certain European cities like Florence and Perugia plague doctors were requested to do autopsies to help determine the cause of death and how the plague played a role. Plague doctors became testators and witnesses to numerous wills during times of plague epidemics.