[Secrets of women: gynaecology in the Middle Ages]

A fifteenth-century Dutch manuscript entitled Der vrouwen heimelijcheit (Secrets of women) presents medieval knowledge on gynaecology and obstetrics in the form of an educational poem. Practical knowledge of women's physiology is combined with what we now consider to be superstition. It mentions, for example, that menstruating women often suffer from headaches and back pain, but also that they should not look in the mirror during their periods because it might get stained. The development of the unborn child is discussed and there are instructions for midwives on how to act in case of a difficult birth, e.g. when the child has a very big head, when the child is in the breech position or when an arm or a foot comes out first. The author also explains how to evoke abortion, but changes the subject quickly, because abortion was a sin. A recent edition including an English introduction and translation makes this text available for a broad audience.