Medicinal Experiments, or, A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies

Portrait of Robert Boyle by Johann Kerseboom around 1708

Introduction

Published in England in 1703, Medicinal Experiments, or, A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies (subtitle: For the most part Simple and easily prepared: Very Useful in FAMILIES and fitted for the SERVICE of Country People) is a handbook by Robert Boyle that contains at-home remedies for well over 500 ailments. Given its existence in perhaps the height of the recipe book era in Europe, the book was immensely popular and ended up with four editions and three different volumes, with treatments for conditions from jaundice to muscle cramps. The book was primarily intended to be used in the English countryside where physicians were often not readily accessible and to supplement formal medicine with easy-to-follow homemade remedies. This edition of Medicinal Experiments, or, A collection of Choice and Safe Remedies has been obtained by the University of Pennsylvania via the Edgar Fahs Smith Memorial Collection and is currently available in the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books, and Manuscripts. Boyle’s work and the publication of this book ultimately provide valuable insight into both early-18th century bookmaking and the popular genre of recipe books in England.

Historical Context

Robert Boyle

Born in Ireland in 1627, Robert Boyle was one of the most influential scientists and natural philosophers of the 17th century. From a young age, Boyle’s aptitude was well-noticed, starting his education at Eton College alongside his brother at the age of 8. Boyle was particularly fascinated by the idea of scientific experimentation, and studied the subject at Oxford from 1656 to 1668. At Oxford, he worked alongside the famous Robert Hooke to write his first scientific publication on the physical properties of air, New Experiments Physico-Mechanicall, Touching the Spring of the Air, and Its Effects, in 1960. The second edition of that book was published just two years later and had perhaps Boyle’s most famous scientific achievement, "Boyle’s Law," which explained the inverse relationship between pressure and volume of a gas.. Parallel to this brilliance in science was Boyle's work in philosophy and theology. Boyle was said to be a "serious student of the Bible and Christian Theology," which, towards the end of his life, appears to have motivated him to compile & publish his medical recipes. While he ultimately passed before the later editions of Medicinal Experiments, or, A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies were published, his creativity and wisdom can easily be seen through the countless recipes in the book.

Recipe Books

Recipe Books of the 17th and 18th Centuries

Medicinal Experiments, or, A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies was published at perhaps the height of the recipe book era in England. Recipe books, also known as receipt books, functioned in a diverse set of genres, including cooking, artisanal crafts, and medicine. While the earliest recipe book to be published in Europe is accepted to be Girolamo Ruscelli’s I secreti in 1555, the idea of creating compilations of recipes and trade “secrets” dates centuries prior and can be found in ancient cultures across the world. Nevertheless, the 17th and 18th centuries appear to be a time of heightened use and interest in recipe books likely due to increases in literacy and decreases in costs of paper and production.

Perhaps the field most impacted by the increased popularity of recipe books, medicine had been experiencing a revolution of its own towards publications that appealed to a more generalized, lay-person audience. While there still remained a strong interest in Latin textbooks that could educate physicians, more and more vernacular works were published in English on topics ranging from herbal medicine to common midwife practices and increasingly targeted women who served as household caretakers of the time. In fact, these books aimed at the general population became so widespread in the 17th and 18th centuries that physicians began making concerted efforts to restrict medical knowledge from reaching the lay-people. The time period was particularly suited for this struggle as there was a continued emphasis on using homemade remedies for treating common ailments, which increased demand for printed manuscripts of recipes, especially those that had authorship from well-recognized and trusted individuals.

Book Specifics

History Behind Medicinal Experiments, or, A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies

After a long and illustrious career as a philosopher and experimental scientist, Boyle spent much of his time at the end of his life compiling and revising the medicinal recipes he had accrued throughout his life. Some experts estimate that he may have had more than one thousand recipes and notes ranging in complexity from rare chemical reactions to everyday herbal remedies, but nevertheless Boyle's first publication included only 50 recipes and was meant for private circulation. Titled Some Receipts of Medicines, the initial compilation in 1688 grew to 100 recipes in Medicinal Experiments, which was published a year after Boyle had passed away in 1692.

From this second edition, and the first namesake for the fourth edition currently held at the University of Pennsylvania, the target audience and goal of the collection was evident. The book’s format, being a duodecimo, was small at around 7 by 4.5 inches in size and could fit into a pocket and easily be carried around. The book was also initially sold at an affordable price of one shilling (about $15 in USD today) and became popular due to this price point and its appeal for those who did not have ready access to physicians. The second edition in fact stated that the book was “Useful in Families, and Very Serviceable to Country People."

Due to the popularity and success of the book’s second edition, as noted by the publishers in the preface, two more volumes were created in 1693 and 1694. These editions expanded upon the original work of Boyle and drew from his original collection of over a thousand medical recipes. In 1703, these three volumes were all combined together and published in one collection containing over 500 recipes. In this version, which is the edition held in the Kislak Center at the University of Pennsylvania, each of the volumes are printed in succession, with an index for the ensuing volume and that volume itself printed immediately following the previous volume.

Publishing

Portrait of Robert Boyle and Title Page of Medicinal Experiments: or, A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies at the Kislak Center of the University of Pennsylvania

Medicinal Experiments, or, A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies was published in 1703 in London, England. As seen at the bottom of the title page, the book was published by Sam Smith and Jo. Taylor. Within that title page is more information of the book, including its full title: "Medicinal Experiments or, A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies, for the most part Simple and easily prepared, very useful in FAMILIES and fitted for the SERVICE of Country People." In addition, the title page denotes that this version of the book is in fact the fourth edition and contains three different parts for a total of more than 500 of Robert Boyle’s medical recipes. While there does not appear to be any distinct signs of copyrighting with the book, there is an elaborate portrait of the late Robert Boyle on the page prior to the title page with the words “The Honorable Robert Boyle” written directly beneath the title. This detailed portrait and the commemoration on the actual title page, “By the Honoruable R. Boyle, Fellow of the Royal Society,” undoubtedly credits Robert Boyle for his authorship of the ensuing recipes.

Provenance

The known provenance of the book begins in 1947 when Penn acquired this copy of the book as a part of the Edgar Fahs Smith Memorial Collection. The Smith Memorial Collection was dedicated to Penn chemistry professor and provost Edgar Fahs Smith. The collection consists of over 50 manuscripts from the 16th to 18th centuries as well as lecture notes and recipe books from scientists in the 18th and 19th centuries. The two biggest scientist representations in the journal are Robert Boyle and Joseph Priestly.

Physical Features

Sample pages from Medicinal Experiments, or A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies

Substrate

Spine from the Medicinal Experiments, or A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies copy in the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Book, and Manuscripts

The book is made out of soft, woven paper from the 18th century. As seen in the picture to the left, the pages do show some evidence of yellowing and dirt accumulation likely due to the use of the book over the past 4 centuries. There also appears to be some ink smudging from when the book was printed. Nevertheless, the pages are in good condition given the book’s age and there do not appear to be any missing pages or rips/tears in any of the pages that would cause some of the text to be lost.

Format

The pages of the book are fairly small, roughly measuring 3 by 7 inches, which is well-suited for its use as a handbook that could easily be transported and carried through the countryside. The book resembles a codex format and has a duodecimo bibliographic format.

Binding

The binding of the book is typical of a codex with one side of the pages bound together and covered with a pasteboard with “Robert Boyle” written on it. The book was rebound in June of 1958 by Bear Hardt, leading to the newer front and back covers as well as endpapers found in the book. The actual text block appears to have been glued with some sort of reddish glue or color that has since started to disintegrate and stain some of the pages and front cover. The pasteboard covering the spine is in bad shape with pieces of this outer covering falling off and the glue drying out so that some of the quires of the book are falling out. This edition of Medicinal Experiments, or, A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies is very delicate and, despite the modern rebinding, showcases its age.

Navigation

Due to the nature of the book containing three different volumes, the navigation of Medicinal Experiments, or, A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies is slightly convoluted. Before the start of the first volume of recipes are four main paratexts (see Paratexts): “The Preface,” “The Author’s Preface,” “The Author’s Introduction to the First Volume,” and “The Table of the First and Second Volume.” This last paratext serves as index for the first and second volumes of recipes and lists the conditions discussed in the book in alphabetical order with the associated page numbers aligned on the right hand margin (see picture to the left).

Table of Contents for First and Second Volumes of Medicinal Experiments, or A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies

This table of contents compliments the primary purpose of the book: to provide quick & easy home remedies for common ailments. With this index, book users can simply look through the alphabetical organization for which ailment they are seeking treatment for and then flip to the corresponding pages of the book where those recipes are located. This organization strategy makes the book effective at fulfilling its purpose, which is also evident in the physical use of the book. While the pages of the text themselves are in fairly good condition, the binding of the book is in very poor condition. This may be due to the fact that the book was meant to be read extensively and used practically, which would involve lots of flipping, rather than detailed analysis and close-reading of all of the pages of the book.

Immediately following the last recipe of the first volume are the title pages for the second volume. Compared to the title pages preceding the first and third volumes, these title pages are rather simplistic and are consistent with the idea that this version of the second volume was never actually published by itself but rather was always published in conjunction with the first volume. This is also confirmed by the fact that the first and second volumes have a joint index, rather than a separate index preceding the start of the second volume recipes as would have been done if the second volume had been published as an independent book.

Title page for the Second Volume of Medicinal Experiments, or A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies

Title page for the Third Volume of Medicinal Experiments, or A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies

Unlike the second volume of the book, the third volume of recipes has its own title page that resembles that of the first volume. It also has its own preface and index as additional paratexts before the start of the recipes for that volume. On the title page for the third volume, the volume number is indicated as “The Third and Last Volume,” indicating that the publishers did in fact anticipate that there would be no fourth volume of recipes to be published in this collection. The fact that the third volume has all of these paratexts for itself indicates that at one point in time, the volume was published independent of the first and second volumes. The index for the third volume resembles that for the first and second volumes, with the alphabetical sorting of the medical terms with their associated pages aligned on the right hand margin of the page. This also demonstrates that the third volume of the book was meant to be used in the same way as the first and second volumes; that is, the recipes were meant to be quick and easily accessible rather than intensively read.

Paratexts

Medicinal Experiments: or, A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies contains 4 main paratexts prior to the start of the recipes of the first volume. In addition, as mentioned in Navigation, the second volume is preceded by a simple title page while the third volume is preceded by a title page and a second index.

The Preface

Following the title page, Medicinal Experiments: or, A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies has two paratexts. The first, titled “The Preface," begins by thanking the author Robert Boyle and praising him for his benevolence and aptitude in making and then sharing the medical recipes. In the note, the publishers also provide insight into the reasoning behind the creation of the book. As the publishers explain, the first volume of the book was such a success that the second and third volumes were eventually published before this collection of all three volumes was finally published in 1703.

The Author's Preface

Following this publisher’s note is “The Author's Preface,” which was written by Robert Boyle himself and explains his reasoning behind creating the book . In this preface, Boyle talks about how medicine is not his primary profession, yet he is inspired and driven by the ideas of Philanthropy and Christianity and decided to publish this originally small collection of medical recipes. Boyle specifically names and praises philosophers Democritus, Pythagoras, and Aristotle as he explains the reasoning behind the publication of his medical recipes.

The Author's Introduction to the First Volume

After "The Author’s Preface," the text includes Boyle’s introduction to the text, titled “The Author’s Introduction to the First Volume.” In this paratext, Boyle explains the goals and a description of the book. He writes, “the following prescriptions are a part of a Collection of Receipts and Processes, that from Time to Time have been recommended to me by the Experience of others, or approv’d by my own: Receipts that being Parable or Cheap, may easily be made serviceable to poor country people.” He also explains that this book is in no means meant to replace the services of physicians. Instead, following the philosophy of combination medicine of the time period, Boyle explains that these recipes can be helpful in conjunction with the medicine and practices of physicians of the time.

The Table of the First and Second Volume

Following this introduction by Boyle is the last paratext for the first section of the book, the index. Titled “The Table of the First and Second Volume,” this paratext serves as an index for the first and second volumes of the recipe collection. Arranging the conditions treated in alphabetical order, the index resembles those in modern books with the conditions listed on the left margins and the corresponding page numbers in which they are mentioned listed within the same line, but aligned on the right hand margin.

Book Use

Table of Contents for First and Second Volumes of Medicinal Experiments, or A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies

Marginalia

Rebinding marginalia found in the Medicinal Experiments, or A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies copy in Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books, and Manuscripts

There is little marginalia present in this copy of Medicinal Experiments, or, A Collection of Choice and Safe Remedies. One piece of significant marginalia found is in the publisher’s note, where “25 Jy 47 (46074) E.F. Smith Memorial Bk. Ed.” is written near the binding of the book in pencil. According to the librarians at Kislack, this marginalia is likely from the time when Penn acquired the book in 1947 as part of the Edgar Fahs Smith Memorial collection.

Another marginalia found in the copy is a note about the rebinding of the book. Written on one of the blank leaflets at the end of the book is "Rebound by Bear Hardt 6/58 - $9.00." This note is consistent with the newer cover and endpapers present in this copy of the book, which clearly contrast the actual leaves of the text that were published some 250 years prior.

The lack of marginalia is indicative of the use case of this book. Rather than being read intensively and having annotations or thoughts of readers in the margins, the book was used primarily in the countryside to treat ailments and therefore was primarily used extensively. While some may have predicted that previous owners of the book could have added or modified recipes and left some form of marginalia in the book, this edition does not indicate any such note-taking and therefore supports the hypothesis that the book was primarily used extensively.

Marks

There do not appear to be any markings on the book such as underlining, crossing out, or circling any part or parts of the text. This also suggests that the book was used extensively as a handbook for treating common ailments rather than a text that was read intensively and analyzed critically.