What was it like to be a doctor in the Middle Ages? What measures did cities take to preserve their citizens' health? How did medieval people explain the plague? In this interview, Chris Mielke talks with Ottó Gecser of Eötvös Lóránd University, Budapest about medieval sanitation, medical history and plague research.

Some of the topics mentioned in this hour-long talk include urban waste and water management, the role of hospitals, humoral theory and the importance of bathing. Professor Gecser also talks about the research questions of medical history, especially plague research, and the different diseases that can be associated with the Black Death.

This is an archival episode of Past Perfect!, CEU Medieval Radio’s show on medieval and early modern history and culture, which was produced in association with Civil Rádió FM98. In this series, Christopher Mielke casually discusses with his guests various issues from the crusades to archeo-zoology to medieval urine sampling. The discussions are made with the aim to popularize medieval and early modern studies with the help of experts such as early musicians, historians, philologists and archeologists.

This episode was originally recorded and aired in 2012.