Did you know that in the Middle Ages in England, one could swing by during lunch to watch a public execution? Or get into the nearby theatre and watch freshly dissected human bodies? Or maybe a visit to the neighbourhood mental asylum to ‘enjoy’ seeing lunatics do their thing?
It seems quite ridiculous today, but these were actual, and very popular pastimes back then.
Have been reading The Seeds of Life, by Edward Dolnick. From Aristotle, to da Vinci, from shark’s teeth to frog’s pants, the long and strange quest to discover where babies came from. A strange tale indeed – because for a large part of our existence, we didn’t know how exactly babies are formed. An interesting book on the subject, but the tidbits that I started this blog with were also quite intriguing.
What was commonplace then, is unthinkable now. I wonder what things are commonplace now, that will be frowned upon in a couple of hundred years? Anything that you can think of?
Do let me know…and yes, read the book!