3 ms·

On a related note there are documents called "Bills of Mortality" showing weekly deaths during the plague in London during 1665 ( the year before the Great Fire

On a related note there are documents called "Bills of Mortality" showing weekly deaths during the plague in London during 1665 ( the year before the Great Fire ) which list the causes. There some descriptions we'd recognise and other would be a surprise to die from these days, such as "Teeth" - 113 in the week of the linked image. Having had a quick search the best seems to be from the Wellcome Collection. https://wellcomecollection.org/images?query=Bills+of+Mortality https://wellcomecollection.org/images?query=Bills+of+Mortali... and specifically the "Diseases and casualties 15-22 Aug. 1665 from London's dreadful visitation" page https://wellcomecollection.org/works/r4cx4qgx/items https://wellcomecollection.org/works/r4cx4qgx/items

darrenf 5y ago
I find Bills of Mortality fascinating, and am somewhat disappointed that my favourite inscrutable-sounding cause "Rising of the Lights"[0] didn't make it into the list posted. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rising_of_the_lights https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rising_of_the_lights
- dylan604 5y ago
  After reading the wikipedia article, I still have no idea what this is. Lung cancer, pneumonia, some other lung disease, COVID-1619?
  - flobosg 5y ago
    According to one of the references[1]: > Many doctors believed that only vulgar people used the term to describe a tightening sensation in the chest, difficulty breathing and a cough. [1]: https://inews.co.uk/inews-lifestyle/wellbeing/polio-soon-officially-eradicated-five-gruesome-illnesses-no-longer-us-83471 https://inews.co.uk/inews-lifestyle/wellbeing/polio-soon-off...
- Steve44 5y ago
  The 1926 BMJ letters page [1] has correspondence discussing what they thought it was. Nothing specifically medical, but something coming up into the throat and quite possibly croup[2]. For a butcher Lights are generally animal lungs, but the 'cure' was taking a small amount of lead shot or mercury to stop the lights rising. [1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2523749/pdf/brmedj08355-0057b.pdf https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2523749/pdf/brm... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croup https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croup which is now tackled with vaccines and modern medicine.
not2b 5y ago
"Teeth" might be some kind of infected abscess. In pre-antibiotic days you could easily die from that.

darrenf 5y ago

I find Bills of Mortality fascinating, and am somewhat disappointed that my favourite inscrutable-sounding cause "Rising of the Lights"[0] didn't make it into the list posted. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rising_of_the_lights https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rising_of_the_lights

dylan604 5y ago
After reading the wikipedia article, I still have no idea what this is. Lung cancer, pneumonia, some other lung disease, COVID-1619?
- flobosg 5y ago
  According to one of the references[1]: > Many doctors believed that only vulgar people used the term to describe a tightening sensation in the chest, difficulty breathing and a cough. [1]: https://inews.co.uk/inews-lifestyle/wellbeing/polio-soon-officially-eradicated-five-gruesome-illnesses-no-longer-us-83471 https://inews.co.uk/inews-lifestyle/wellbeing/polio-soon-off...
Steve44 5y ago
The 1926 BMJ letters page [1] has correspondence discussing what they thought it was. Nothing specifically medical, but something coming up into the throat and quite possibly croup[2]. For a butcher Lights are generally animal lungs, but the 'cure' was taking a small amount of lead shot or mercury to stop the lights rising. [1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2523749/pdf/brmedj08355-0057b.pdf https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2523749/pdf/brm... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croup https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croup which is now tackled with vaccines and modern medicine.

not2b 5y ago

"Teeth" might be some kind of infected abscess. In pre-antibiotic days you could easily die from that.