[Theory and practice in medieval surgery]

(To what extent) are medieval surgical texts realistic? Were they written as guidelines for everyday work, or are they documents of scientific education? Both is true, as the example of the famous Red Powder shows: all ingredients are based on medical theory, and we can be rather sure that most medieval surgeons knew the recipe. Nevertheless, we have great difficulties in comparing medieval and contemporary "experience". Neither can we identify the drugs (e. g. castoreum), nor the diseases they were used for (at least not for certain), nor do we know what was regarded as improvement or success. Instead, we may reconstruct some medieval patterns of interpretation and perception in the field of medicine. Thus, this article may be read as a contribution to the current discussion in the history of mentalities and in cultural studies.