[Antony's fire (gangrenous ergotism) and medieval iconography]

Ergotism was known as Holy Fire or St Antony's Fire in the Middle Ages, because of the burning sensations and limb gangrene it entailed. It was a frequent disorder, caused by eating rye flour contaminated by the fungus Claviceps purpurea. The Hospitable Order of St Antony was founded near Vienne in France, and counted 400 establishments in Europe by 1777. Ergotism is the subject of an abundant iconography, including statues and paintings. Woodcuts show the temptations of St Antony, with strange and diabolic scenes, and individuals with gangrenous limbs. Germanic woodcuts of the XVth century show various stages of ergotism and hands and feet. The tryptics of Bosch and Grunewald bear witness to the frequency and gravity of this disorder, at the beginning of the XVIth century.