Juris,
Thanks for the full references--vol. 3 from the Motif-Index was not
on the shelf in our library, so I was a bit at a loss. We have a second
copy buried within some journal series, but it is hard to work with.
The entire section of G303 looks interesting from the point of view of
someone like myself doing work on ways to ward off demons!
Karen
According to the Tacuinum Sanitatis, a late 14th-century medical
handbook, lettuce is good for warding off more than demons:
Nature: Cold and humid in the second degree (some mss say the third
degree). Optimum: Those with large leaves and of a lemon-yellow
colour (obviously, tastes change). Usefulness: Relieves insomnia and
spermatorrhea (gonorrhea, in some mss). Dangers: It is harmful to
coitus and to the eyesight. Neutralization of the Dangers: By mixing
it with celery.
Undoubtedly, this is pretty far off the original topic, but it might
be useful in medieval salad theory.
Cheers,
Jim Bugslag
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
