Pliny the Elder and 
Nicholas of Poland 
on Snake Products 
and Their Medical 
Applications
Adriana Grzelak-Krzymianowska*
One knows quite a lot about the significance of the snake itself in the 
culture of antiquity and later times, starting with the mythological 
story of Asclepius,1 through stories connected with historical figures 
such as Cleopatra, to ancient treatises on medicine which described on 
the one hand how snake bites should be avoided and cured,2 and on 
the other the use of snakes in medical procedures and pharmacology, 
such as for anesthesia and the treatment of various ailments. One can 
find references to snakes and their symbolic significance in Christian 
treatises,3 not to mention many later works by different medici and 
scholars. In terms of the use of various medicines, one can distinguish 
two trends in medieval times, in the 13th and 14th centuries in Europe 
and specifically Poland, both, from our perspective, fantastic. However, 
as we shall see, the two trends are fantastic to various extents: there is a 
strictly medical trend, as well as a non-medical trend, which expands 
the framework for using various “magic” or folkloristic remedies. In this 
paper, I propose to focus on the extent to which one of the well-known 
representatives of medieval physicians in the Polish territory, Nicholas 
of Poland, reproduced both the fantastic and the more “medical” in-
formation on the use of snakes and vipers in the treatment of humans 
that appeared in the text of Pliny the Elder, author of the monumental 
1 See Luigi Bragazzi et al., “Asclepius and Epidaurus.”
2 Voort, “Ancient Herpetology 1.”
3 Libera, “Motyw lekarza i lekarstwa,” Fondriest, “Animali d’Oriente,” Wołoszyn, 
“Zrzuciłem duży kamień.”
doi: https://doi.org/10.4312/clotho.5.2.33-54
* University of Lodz, Department of Classical Philology, ul. Narutowicza 68, 
90-136 Łódź; adriana.grzelak-krzymianowska@uni.lodz.pl.
CLOTHO 12 (4).indd   33 1. 03. 2024   10:35:56
ADRIANA GRZELAK-KRZYMIANOWSKA34
Historia Naturalis,4 especially in the books 29 and 30 of this work.5 This 
article aims to show the correlations and interrelationships between 
these texts, abstracting from earlier and later ancient accounts on the 
subject and the sources of Pliny the Elder himself and his continuators, 
which themselves will be discussed in another work.
Pliny the Elder, the encyclopedist who lived in the first century 
AD, and the physician Nicholas of Poland are separated by thirteen 
centuries, during which various fields of knowledge and science, 
including medical science, developed. By the beginning of the 14th 
century, several universities founded to teach medicine still drew 
profusely on ancient traditions: the Aristotelian and the Galenic. In 
Poland, the first Faculty of Medicine was not established until 1364 with 
the foundation of the Cracow Academy.6 Nicholas of Poland, therefore, 
had to be educated outside the country, like a significant part of Polish 
scientists of that time.7 Nicholas of Poland (also known as Nicholas of 
Montpellier), whose references to ancient medical concepts collected 
by Pliny the Elder are the subject of this article, was born about 1235 in 
Silesia and died in Cracow ca. 1316. He was a medieval Polish-German 
4 Pliny the Elder undertook to describe the whole world as he knew it, all the 
manifestations of nature, however insignificant. He set out to do something new 
that none of the earlier authors had ever attempted. He wrote not to have his 
work read for entertainment but to be a mine of knowledge, a compendium in 
which to find all the information concerning the natural world and the benefits 
derived from it. He relied on the works he had read and on his own observa-
tion. His frequent mistakes can sometimes be explained by him taking notes 
by ear, incorrectly noting down certain facts, or simply misunderstanding a 
Greek phrase. Pliny was unquestionably a scientist – a man more concerned 
with passing on the knowledge and verifying it than with the applauding of his 
audience; a man deeply fascinated by the world around him and the uniqueness 
of nature, yet also recording superstitions, fairy tales, magical recipes, and even 
spells. See Migdał, “Nauka i magia.”
5 These products were not only used to treat humans, but also animals. See, e.g., 
Plin., HN 30.148.
6 In 1950, it was separated from the Jagiellonian University and formed into an 
independent university, the Medical Academy in Cracow, later the Nicolaus 
Copernicus Medical Academy in Cracow.
7 The second half of the 12th century saw the establishment of universities in 
Montpellier, in Languedoc, in the south of France, and in Paris. In Italy, Salerno 
was in operation, although it soon lost ground to Parma and especially Bologna: 
both centers established medical schools particularly competent in surgery. This 
was soon followed by the center in Padua, to become the main hub of medical 
education in Europe in the centuries to follow. For more on Polish medicine 
treatises see Grzelak-Krzymianowska, “A Short Review.”
CLOTHO 12 (4).indd   34 1. 03. 2024   10:35:57
PLINY THE ELDER AND NICHOLAS OF POLAND 35
friar and healer of Silesian origin.8 As a member of the Dominican 
Order around 1250, he moved to Montpellier,9 where he became a 
teacher in the Dominican school. Around 1270, he returned to Silesia 
and entered the Dominican convent at Cracow, where he, as an already 
famous and charismatic medicus, provided medical and spiritual care 
to ordinary people.10 Nicholas represented an alternative medical 
movement that flourished in Upper Silesia in the late 13th century.11 He 
was also a favorite doctor in the court of Leszek II the Black (Lestko 
Nigritius), the Duke of Sieradz, and his wife Griffine, and they both 
followed his medical advice.12 Nicholas was educated at Montpellier 
when scholastic medicine was highly developed. However, Nicholas 
appears to have rejected the academic medical tradition, opting for an 
“empirical” medical system.13 His drugs were based upon the principle 
that God had conferred “marvelous” virtues on the most common 
things like serpents and toads. Nicholas urged for the return to natural, 
anti-intellectual, and anti-scholastic methods of healing,14 which cor-
responds perfectly with the ideas reported by Pliny the Elder. He was 
8 According to Ganszyniec, Nicholas was probably gente Germanus, natione Polo-
nus; see Brata Mikołaja z Polski pisma, 5.
9 He probably went there around 1250 for the studium generale, founded in 1248 
by the Dominicans at the university. Montpellier was already famous for its 
medical science, with the university founded in 1180 and France’s first faculty 
of medicine in 1221. So far, there is no documentary evidence that Nicholas gra-
duated in medicine. For more, see Maciąg-Fiedler, “Medycyna cudowna.”
10 For a comprehensive biography, see Ganszyniec, Brata Mikołaja z Polski pisma, 
5–13; Eamon and Keil, “Plebs amat empirica.”
11 Nicholas is often confused with his namesake, a physician who, like him, studied 
in France (or Italy) and was active in Greater Poland at the same time. There 
are many documents from the 13th and early 14th centuries in which Nicolaus 
medicus is mentioned, appearing at various princely courts. In some cases, in the 
absence of more precise information, it is difficult to determine unequivocally 
which Nicholas is being referred to. See Maciąg-Fiedler, “Medycyna cudowna,” 
159.
12 See Bielowski, “Rocznik Traski.”
13 Eamon and Keil, “Plebs amat empirica,” 180–96.
14 For this reason, among others, it is worth examining the relationship between 
the text of Pliny the Elder, who did not shy away from magical tales, and Nicho-
las, who, as it were, continued this way of thinking about healing. Except that 
Pliny was a historian and Nicholas had a medical education, hence one would 
expect a different, more methodical and scientific approach to the issues pre-
sented. He was not the only one who practiced in this vein, as a number of 
even more fantastic beliefs appear in the Pauline texts included in the codices 
–  al though it is difficult to judge how seriously this text can be taken. 
CLOTHO 12 (4).indd   35 1. 03. 2024   10:35:58
ADRIANA GRZELAK-KRZYMIANOWSKA36
the author of three works on medicine, two of them survived in Latin, 
Antipocras (Liber empiricorum),15 Experimenta (authorship uncertain), 
and one in German, Cyrurgia.16 In Experimenta (de animalibus),17 in 
which information on the use of snakes for medical purposes appears, 
Nicholas provided patients with various natural animal remedies to 
be served in the forms of powders, drinks, pills, ointments, and oils. 
Experimenta are a collection of prescriptions, so it is not easy 
to sketch a table of contents, although the text may be organized 
by animal: chapter 1 toads (with snakes and bears), chapter 2 green 
frogs, chapter 3 water frogs, chapters 4 and 5 vipers and snakes.18 In 
one of the BDS2 manuscripts, there are two more chapters on the oil 
of philosophers, which are not considered in this article. Nothing 
is known about the original text. Numerous manuscripts examined 
by Ganszyniec are only to be found in Western Europe, so it may be 
assumed that it was probably written there, perhaps in Montpellier, 
which at the time was a center where many important scholars were 
gathered. The Experimenta is one of the texts very widespread in Eu-
15 In his polemical work Antipocras, Nicholas advocates for the empirical method 
of practice against “Hippocratic” physicians who offered nothing but lies hidden 
behind fraudulent words and authority. Nicholas wrote: “Pungat et artet eos, ut 
apud Cristum Phariseos / Fama carens laude maculataque pratica fraude, / Que 
non curare soleat, sed multiplicare / Morbos est solita re sordida, voce polita” 
(Antip. 336–39).
16 See Ganszyniec, Brata Mikołaja z Polski pisma, 14. The treatise is probably a later 
compilation.
17 On the title and the manuscripts, see Ganszyniec, Brata Mikołaja z Polski 
pisma, 127–35. The title Experimenta corresponds to the Greek word ἐμπειρικά, 
later recepta. Frequently encountered as a title in the 13th century and later, the 
word is not peculiar only to medical texts, but appears wherever knowledge and 
research rely on experience. Only in one manuscript (B) does the work bear the 
title Experimenta de animalibus, probably not authentic.
18 In one of the editions of the text of the Experimenta of Nicholas of Poland (L3 
of the late 15th century), the parts on snakes, i.e. chapters 4 and 5, are assigned 
to Experimenta XII Johannis Paulini, published in 1913 by John W. S. Johnsson 
in Bulletin de la Société française d’histoire de la médecine, 257–67. Experimenta 
Paulini can almost always be encountered in connection with the text of Ni cho-
las. Paulinus is quite unknown; he probably lived in the second half of the 13th 
century and probably around where Nicholas was. He may have been associated 
with Montpellier. Some kind of relationship existed between the two medici, 
but it is not known what kind. It is noteworthy that Paulinus gives not only the 
medical uses of snake powder but also its more mystical uses, which Nicholas, 
in turn, fought against in his work Antipocras. See Ganszyniec, Brata Mikołaja 
z Polski pisma, 128.
CLOTHO 12 (4).indd   36 1. 03. 2024   10:35:58
PLINY THE ELDER AND NICHOLAS OF POLAND 37
rope and is undoubtedly related to other texts that originated in this 
medical environment. Nicholas of Poland is given as the author of 
the text, but it is proved that chapters 6 and 7, and probably also 1–5, 
were not penned by him. As Ganszyniec suggests, it can be concluded 
that this is a text written according to the instructions or perhaps the 
recollections of some physician. It was likely collated and published 
under the name of Nicholas, a well-known and respected figure of the 
time, although probably without his knowledge.19
I want to take a closer look at the relationship between Experimenta 
and Pliny’s monumental text. This is an intriguing issue, as on the one 
hand, one can focus on the first-century text in 37 books in which Pliny 
the Elder, passionate about science, cites the achievements of know-
ledge as well as the various ideas and beliefs of the ancients about the 
world as they knew it,20 and on the other, there is Nicholas of Poland, 
a Montpellier-educated physician who, during his studies, must have 
become familiar with the achievements and concepts of antiquity, as 
well as the various medical ideas and visions circulating in his time. 
The first mention of snakes appears in Experimenta after a short 
introduction, which is, as it were, a praise of Nicholas of Poland 
himself.21 The author begins the text by describing how to produce an 
efficacious powder (pulvus) of a toad, which can also be made from 
other animals such as snakes or scorpions (simili modo fac pulverem 
de serpentibus et de scorpionibus).22 
19 Ganszyniec, Brata Mikołaja z Polski pisma, 128.
20 The ideas about plant and folk remedies appear in Stannard, “Medicinal Plants.”
21 “Incipiunt Experimenta Fratris Nicolai, medici de Polonia, qui fuit in Monte 
Pessulano xx annis, qui tante fuerat experientie, quod ante ipsum non creditor 
similis ei fuisse, nec speratur de future: sicut patet in miris operibus suis, in 
diversis provinciis et regionibus curas magnas et subita faciendo.” (And here 
begin the tried and tested cures of Brother Nicholas, a Polish physician who 
had been in Montpellier for 20 years, and was so experienced that it is said that 
no one was his equal, nor will be, as is evident from his miraculous activity, as 
he performed great and prompt cures in various districts and neighborhoods.) 
(Exp. 1–5) All the quotations from Nicholas of Poland’s work follow Ganszyniec, 
Brata Mikołaja z Polski pisma. All English translation by the author.
22 The same method can be used to prepare powder from any animal; a toad and 
a frog (attested also in Pliny, HN 32.67, 32.121; Pedanius Dioscorides 2.26; Galen 
12.362), a hare (Marcellus Empiricus 26.109), a goat (ME 26. 94), or a scorpion 
(Rhazes, Ad Mansorem 9.73). “Nota quod isto modo pulverizabis: recipe tres buf-
fones vel quattuor, et pone in olla recenti, et obturabis cum argilla ita quod non 
possit evaporare; et tunc pone iuxta ignem ita distanter quod non comburantur 
intus, sed solum desiccentur. Et per scitum, quando concucies ollam, percipies 
quando sunt bene siccati ita quod possint pulverizari: tunc depone de olla. Si 
CLOTHO 12 (4).indd   37 1. 03. 2024   10:35:59
ADRIANA GRZELAK-KRZYMIANOWSKA38
It is not a new method or an extraordinary recipe. This kind of 
treatment was already examined and prescribed in ancient times. 
Descriptions of the animal powder production are found in Pliny 
29.98 (oportet autem comburi omnia eodem modo ut semel dicamus, 
in vase fictile novo argilla circumlito atque ita in furnum indito; idem et 
in potione proficit)23 and in 30.119, where he mentions that the animals 
should be burned alive (vivas quoque cremare; viperam vivam in fictili 
novo comburare). The viper or snake powder24 and its use is mentioned 
several times; ash made of viper’s head mixed with cypress oil was 
supposed to effectively treat hard lumps in the sinews (nervorum no-
dis capitis viperini cinis in oleo cyprino, 30.110). The same body part, 
dried and then burned and served with vinegar (viperae caput aridum 
adservatum et combustum, dein ex aceto inpositum, 30.106), helps with 
the condition known as erysipelas. The medicine prepared from the 
incinerated head of a viper, known as echeon, was also supposed to 
help with eye diseases and dysfunctions such as cataracts or dimness 
of vision (viperam vivam in fictili novo comburare addito feniculi suco 
ad cyathum unum et turis manna una, atque ita suffusiones oculorum 
et caligines inunguere utilissimum est; id echeon vocatur – 29.119). 
Elsewhere in his work, the author of Natural History mentions that 
ash obtained from an adder burned with salt applied to the tip of the 
tongue not only improves eyesight but is also good for the stomach 
and other unhealthy parts of the human body (et uritur in olla cum 
sale quem lingendo claritaem oculorum consecuntur et stomachi toti-
usque corporis tempestivitates, 29.120; effectum ostendit et per se capitis 
autem nondum sunt desiccate, perfecte desicca in vento ad umbram; et postea 
contere minutissime in mortario. Et poste repone in vase vitreo bene obturato 
ita quod non possit evaporare.” (Exp. 1.3) (The main steps we need to follow to 
prepare it are the following. We should take three or four toads. One shall put 
animals in a new pot and seal it with clay to avoid evaporation. Next the pot 
should be placed near the fire to make the animals dry out, but it must be done 
carefully not to burn them. To check if the animals are ready to be pulverized, 
one should shake the pot and decide whether they are already dried out and 
suitable for powdering. Then the burnt animal must be removed from the pot, 
dried in the wind and shade if necessary, then pulverized in a mortar. Finally 
one shall place the powder in a glass container and seal it tightly.) 
23 All the quotations follow Jones, Pliny.
24 In the case of Pliny’s text, there are descriptions of the use of both different 
species of snakes and vipers. Pliny the Elder himself states that the viper is only 
one kind of snake, one that hides underground (HN 8.59). He mentions different 
species of snakes and their uses. In this article they are treated all together. For 
more on the species of snakes in Pliny the Elder, see Böhme and Koppetsch, 
“Snake Names.”
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PLINY THE ELDER AND NICHOLAS OF POLAND 39
viperini cinis; utilissime eo oculos inunguit … 30.121). Pliny also cites 
that a remedy made of salt burned in a new clay pot with an adder 
and rose oil sprinkled into an infected ear cures all diseases, and that 
this kind of concoction also helps the gums and facilitates tooth loss 
(serpentis cum sale in olla exustae cinis cum rosaceo in contrariam 
aurem infusus … eadem cavis indita ut sine molestia cadant praestat, 
30.25). With powdered viper mixed with bull’s tallow, or powder from 
an incinerated snake served in oil or wax, cases of scrofulosis, a form 
of tuberculosis that attacks the lymph nodes in the neck, were also 
treated (item cinis aspidum cum sebo taurino inponitur, anguinus adeps 
mixtus oleo, item anguium cinis ex oleo inlitus vel cum cera, 30.37). In 
this case, drinking powder from a snake was also supposed to help, 
especially from a reptile that had died in wheel ruts (edisse quoque eos 
medios abscissis utrimque extremis partibus adversus strumas prodest, 
vel cinerem bibisse in novo fictili crematorum, efficacius multo inter duas 
orbitas occisorum, 30.37). In addition, ash obtained from viper’s skin 
was used to combat alopecia, i.e., hair loss (pellium viperinarum cinis 
alopecias celerrime explet, 29.109). Viperine ashes were also included 
in ointments for the treatment of various wounds such as snakebites 
or viper bites (viperae caput inpositum, vel alterius quam quae percus-
serit, sin fine prodest, item si quis ipsam eam in vapore baculo sustinat, 
aiunt enim recanere, item si quis exustae eiusdem cinere inlinat, 29.69). 
In Experimenta, less elaborate mechanisms for using snake powder 
are described. Nicholas of Poland writes that by adding it to wine and 
drinking it in the morning and the evening, we can cure stones in any 
body part, e.g., in the kidneys or bladder, which seems a much more 
palatable solution than mixing it with vinegar, as suggested by Pliny.25
Ad calculum frangendum in quocumque loco fuerit, sive in renibus, 
sive in vesica – Recipe pulverem serpentis et pone in vino modicum, 
et da pacienti bibere mane et sero. (Exp. 1.1)
To remove stones anywhere possible, whether in the kidneys or 
bladder, take a little powder from a snake, add a little to the wine, 
and give the patient to drink morning and evening.
Like Pliny the Elder, the author of the Experimenta finds powder 
effective in treating various types of wounds. Still, the form of this 
25 According to the old Polish tradition, it was believed that roasted reptiles, lizards 
and snakes in the form of ashes should be drunk, as this potion protects people 
from being bitten by a snake. See Majewski, Wąż w mowie, 348.
CLOTHO 12 (4).indd   39 1. 03. 2024   10:36:00
ADRIANA GRZELAK-KRZYMIANOWSKA40
treatment of Nicholas differs significantly from the one described by the 
Roman writer. According to Nicholas, the wound should be sprinkled 
with the powder once a day in winter, twice in summer, and wrapped 
in a linen sheet. The procedure should be repeated until the wound is 
healed (Exp. 1.4). This type of powder heals various types of wounds 
(vulnera), ulcers (ulcera, apostemata) and inflammations (inflaturae), 
as well as toothaches (dolor dentium). It can be moistened with saliva 
and applied to a wound or placed on a sore tooth. The medicus writes:
Ad omnia etiam ista valet pulvis serpentis, maxime ad apostemata et 
ad dolorem dentium, si intus de ipso ponatur; et vulnera, si cum sputo 
linita circumligetur super apostemata vel vulnus, cito curat. (Exp. 1.6)
Snake powder is helpful for all these problems, especially for abscesses 
and toothache if applied internally; it will also quickly heal wounds 
if mixed with saliva and applied around the wound or abscess.
Other uses of snake powder not mentioned by Pliny the Elder include 
its use during childbirth. Simply attaching it to the abdomen of a 
woman in labor could speed up delivery.
Valet etiam predictus pulvis serpentis mulieri laboranti in partu: 
ligetur predictus pulvis super nudum ventrem et statim parit. (Exp. 1.7) 
The aforementioned snake powder also helps the woman in labor; 
attach this powder to the bare abdomen, and the woman will then 
give birth immediately.
The skin of the serpent eaten cooked or tied to the abdomen of the 
parturient will also have a similar effect.
Pellis etiam serpentis mulieri laboranti in partu ligata super ventrem, 
mulierem statim parere facit. Pellis cocta et comesta idem facit quod 
et sepens. (Exp. 4.11)
The skin of the snake attached to the abdomen of the woman in labor 
makes the woman give birth immediately. The skin cooked and eaten 
brings the same as the snake.
For this purpose, however, Pliny encourages using a snake slough 
placed in the lumbar region. He writes that it facilitates childbirth but 
should be removed immediately afterward. However, when drunk with 
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PLINY THE ELDER AND NICHOLAS OF POLAND 41
wine and mixed with frankincense, it causes miscarriage (anguium 
senectus adalligata lumbis faciliorem partus facit, protinus a puerperio 
removenda; dant et in vino bibendam cum tuere, aliter sumpta abortum 
facit, 30.129). A serpent’s slough, as the Magi claim according to Pliny, 
attached to the patient’s body in a piece of bull skin prevents spasms 
(serpentinum senectus in pelle taurina adalligata spasmos fieri prohibet, 
30.110). In his Naturalis Historia, the author cites the use of snake’s 
slough for treatment very frequently, much more so than the skin itself. 
According to Pliny, snake slough applied to the skin immediately after 
bathing together with bitumen and lamb tallow cures, as does snake ash 
with vinegar, the affliction of erysipelas (senectus serpentinum ex aqua 
inlita a balneo cum bitumine et sebo agnino, 30.106). Snake slough in 
vinegar mixed with turtle bile, the alleged treatment for a great many 
conditions, was considered an effective remedy for purulent discharges 
from the ears (idem [fel testudinum] cum vernatione anguium aceto 
admixto unice purulentis auribus prodest; quidam bubulum fel admiscent 
decoctarum carnium testudinis suco, addita atque vernatione anguium; 
sed vino testudinem excocunt, 32.37). Snake slough heated in oil and 
pine resin used in torches and applied to each ear would supposedly 
also help with ear pain and other problems (vernationis membrana 
cum oleo taedaeque resina calefacta et auri alterutri infusa, 30.24–26); 
similarly, a concoction made of old snake slough and vinegar, wrapped 
in a strip of wool, would help with hearing disorders. Snake slough 
boiled in wine was seen as effective in treating scars, but also leprosy 
(cicatrices ad colorem educit … vernatio anguium ex vino decocta … 
item vitiligines albas, vitiliginem et cantharides cum rutae foliorum du-
abus partibus, 30.120). Slough was also used to treat all types of warts 
(verrucas omnium generum … membrana senectutis anguium, 30.81). 
In pulverized form or mixed with vinegar, honey, and resin, it was used 
for the treatment of ulcers and other anal region diseases (sedis vitiis 
efficacissima sunt … senecta serpentis ex aceto, 30.69). A cooked slough 
in a tin pot with rose oil would presumably help with dysentery and 
painful constipation (senectus anguium dysinteriae et tenesmis in stagneo 
vase decoquitur cum rosaceo, vel si in alio, cum stagno inlinitur, 30.60). 
The slough dropped from a snake was understood to have the power 
to cure lice in three days if put in a drink (phthiriasim et totius corporis 
pota membrana senectutis anguium triduo necat, serum exempto caseo 
potum cum exiguo sale, 30.144). In addition, snake slough would also 
be used to treat epilepsy ([comitialibus morbis]26 praedicatur et iocur 
26 In Rome, epilepsy was known as morbus comitialis (“disease of the chamber”), 
a curse sent by the gods. See “epilepsja” in Zieliński, Słownik pochodzenia nazw.
CLOTHO 12 (4).indd   41 1. 03. 2024   10:36:00
ADRIANA GRZELAK-KRZYMIANOWSKA42
milvi devoratum et senectus serpentium, 30.93). Viperine skin or slough 
obtained in spring and mixed with fat would be rubbed on eyes to 
improve vision (iumentorum oculis membrana aspidis quam exui vere, 
cum adipe eiusdem claritatem inunctis facit, 29.121); rubbed with a male 
crab in wine, it was supposed to help with the bite of a rabid dog and, 
if placed in chests of drawers, it was attributed the power to kill moths 
([in canis rabidi morsu tuetur a pavore aquae] membrana sive senectus 
anguium vernatione exuta cum cancro masculo ex vino trita, [nam hac 
etiam per se reposita in arcis armariisque tineas necant], 29.108).
Nicholas of Poland did not forget the skin of a viper or snake – no 
part of the snake was to be wasted. He found it to have numerous 
uses in alleviating various ailments. Similarly to Pliny, he wrote that 
the inside part of a snakeskin, dried and placed on a tooth, would 
reduce pain.
Pellis autem serpentis exsiccata a parte interior, que est circa carnem, 
si ponatur supra dentes, omnino dolorem mitigate, maxime ex calida 
causa. (Exp. 4.8)
Snakeskin dried from the side against the meat and placed on the 
tooth reduces pain, especially one caused by a warm thing.
Snakeskin, like in the case of Pliny’s slough or snake powder, when 
applied to any ulcer or cancer on the face or even a difficult-to-heal 
wound, would supposedly heal it quickly and soothe the pain. In 
addition, it would ensure that no trace of the treatment remains. 
Nicholas’ snake powder was deemed to have a similar effect. 
Pellis autem serpentis cum sputo linita ex parte carnis et super 
omne apostema et noli me tangere posita, cito frangit et dolorem, 
leniter putrescere facit, et quasi nullam cicatricem dimittit. Et hoc 
probavi. (Exp. 4.9)
Pellis enim serpentis  linita ut prius, apposite ad omnia vulnera 
quantumcunque gravia, dolorem mitigate, leniter putrescere facit, 
et quasi nullam cicatricem dimittit. Et hoc probavi. (Exp. 4.10)
In turn, the snakeskin, anointed with saliva from the flesh side and 
placed on any ulcer or cancer of the face, quickly opens it, soothes 
the pain, makes them rot gently, and leaves almost no scar. And this 
I have tried out.
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PLINY THE ELDER AND NICHOLAS OF POLAND 43
The skin of the snake, anointed as before, laid on any wounds, though 
severe, soothes the pain and makes them decay gently, leaving almost 
no scar. This I have also tried out.
Another use of reptiles, clearly present in Pliny the Elder and later 
in Nicholas, is the consumption of either a whole snake or one of its 
parts, prepared appropriately. This should come as no surprise. The 
consumption of snakes itself in ancient times came into use through 
the customs of certain peoples, notably, the Italic Marsi, whose cou-
ntry the Romans considered to be the home of witchcraft (Hor. Sat. 
1.9.29; Ep. 17.28), and their main deity Angitia, a goddess of healing, 
especially skilled in curing serpent bites by charms and the herbs of 
the Marsian woods.27 However, it is worth mentioning at the outset 
how one would go about preparing a reptile for consumption. Pliny 
the Elder mentions several times in his encyclopedic work the need 
to prepare the animal properly before it can be consumed. First of all, 
as the author notes, a good plan according to some is to eat the mid-
dle of the snake, but first cut off its marginal parts (edisse quoque eos 
medios abscissis utrimque extremis partibus adversus strumas prodest, 
vel cinerem bibisse, 30.37). After killing a viper, it is essential to put salt 
in its mouth and let it dissolve, then cut off the front and back of the 
reptile to the length of four fingers,28 remove the entrails,29 and cook 
the rest in water with olive oil, salt and dill (primum omnium occisae 
statim salem in os addi iubent donec liquescat, mox quattuor digitorum 
mensura utrimque praecisa exemptisque interaneis discoquunt in aqua, 
oleo, sale, aneto, et aut statim vescuntur aut pane colligunt, ut saepius 
utantur, 29.121). Adders prepared in this way can be eaten immedi-
ately or mashed into a loaf and eaten from time to time. A broth can 
also be prepared, as it has the property of cleansing the body of lice 
27 Here one can still point to pseudo-Democritus (Plin., HN 10.137; 29.72); “Demo-
critus tradit nominando avis quarum confuso sanguine serpens gignatur, quem 
quisquis ederit, intellecturus sit avium colloquia.” Descriptions of snake-eating 
appear also in Galen, and later in Dioscorides, Aetius, and Paul Aegineta. For 
more on snake bites and various tribes, see Voort, “About Snake Bites.”
28 Even in antiquity, nobody really knew why the tail should be cut off; probably, 
they found it meatless and skinny, ἄσαρκον (Dioscorides 2.16). Perhaps it was 
believed that these parts were poisonous. As for the head, this is also not entirely 
clear; we know they believed in the magical powers of the snake’s tongue. It was 
supposed to be an amulet against misfortune, according to Pliny (HN 30.98).
29 The viscera were not used because they were believed to contain venom, espe-
cially bile (Plin., HN 11.163, 19.122); but sometimes they were also used to cure 
(Plin., HN 29.22).
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ADRIANA GRZELAK-KRZYMIANOWSKA44
and removing itching (ius praeter supra dicta pediculos e toto corpore 
expellit pruritusque etiam summae cutis, 29.121). To prepare the tablets, 
one would cut the viper’s body three fingers from the head and tail, 
removing the intestines and the blue vein adjacent to the spine, then 
boil it in a shallow pot in water with dill, the bones removed, wheat 
flour added, forming the tablets and drying them in the shade (fiunt 
ex vipera pastilli qui theriaci vocantur a Graecis, ternis digitis mensura 
utrimque amputatis exemptisque interaneis et livore spinae adhaerente, 
reliquo corpore in patina ex aqua et aneto discocto spinisque exemptis 
et addita similagine atque ita in umbra siccatis pastillis quibus ad multa 
medicamenta utuntur, 29.70). Such tablets had many medical uses.
In Experimenta, one can also find information regarding preparing 
theriac, a remedy known well since antiquity, although the word’s 
meaning has not been fully clarified yet. For Nicholas, theriac was 
made of green frogs (ranae virides, 2.1., 138), while Pliny insisted that 
it should only be made from a viper (29.70).
Nicholas of Poland also gives other valuable advice on eating 
snake meat in chapter 4 of his work Experimenta. He states after 
ancient authors, including Pliny, that first, the snake must be killed, 
and then its tail and head must be cut off to the length of four fingers. 
Then, its blood must be squeezed out and stored in a glass container. 
The snake is flayed, the skin dried, and then hidden in a safe place. 
He writes as follows:
Accipe serpentem et interface; et post abscinde totam caudam 
per locum per quem stercorizat, et deinde caput ad longitudinem 
quattuor digitorum et plus. Postea accipe residuum, et sanguinem 
exprime in aliquo vase, et conserva in vitro diligenter. Postea excoria 
ad modum anguille, incipiendo a parte grossiori et pellem pone 
super lignum, et exsicca; et post scinde per medium et conserva 
diligenter. Omnia enim ista sunt multum necessaria, sicut inferius 
patebit. (Exp. 4.1)
Take a snake and kill it, then cut off the whole tail from the anus 
and the head up to the length of four fingers. Then, take the rest, 
squeeze the blood into some vessel, and hide it carefully in glass. 
Then skin it like an eel, beginning with the thicker part, and lay 
the skin on a tree and dry it; then cut it open in the middle and 
hide it carefully, for all this is very necessary, as I shall show below.
Viper or snake meat, according to Pliny the Elder, had many appli-
cations and could be prepared in various ways. It could be used to 
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PLINY THE ELDER AND NICHOLAS OF POLAND 45
make soup, as mentioned above. In addition, Pliny mentions the 
use of its individual parts. For example, powder from empty snail 
shells, mixed with wax, was supposed to prevent rectal prolapse, 
but only when mixed with a substance extracted from the brain of 
a viper when its head is pricked. The same brain wrapped in a piece 
of skin attached to a baby’s body would facilitate teething, as would 
snake teeth (cerebrum viperae inligatum pellicula dentitiones adiuvat. 
Idem valent et grandissimi dentes serpentium, 30.137). A snake’s brain 
would presumably work in a similar way, as would a stone pulled 
from the head of a boa constrictor, which the snake was supposed 
to spit out when it feared death. The snake needed to be startled and 
killed, the stone pulled out, and then placed around the child’s neck. 
Boiled viper in three semsisextarii of oil after draining was used as a 
depilatory for excessive or unwanted hair (quidam in tribus heminis 
olei discoctunt viperam, exemptisque ossibus psilotri vice utuntur evolsis 
prius pilis quos renasci nolunt, 30.133). The consumption of viperine 
meat after an unsuccessful ulcer operation was recommended by the 
physician Antonius, as it was supposed to quickly help (Antonius 
quidem medicus cum incidisset insanabilia ulcera, viperas edendas 
dabat miraque celeritate persanabat, 30.117). Pliny writes that eating 
cooked viper’s liver once prevents all snake attacks and bites (horum 
[hydri] iecur servatum adversus percussos ab his auxilium est, 29.72). 
On the other hand, consuming the liver of a water snake or hydrus, 
crushed and added to a drink, was purportedly helpful for urinary 
tract stones. Allegedly, snake bones applied with the rennet of any 
four-legged animal within two days healed a wound after an arrow, 
other sharpened weapon, or foreign substance that had been pulled 
out of it (harundines et tela quaeque alia extrahenda sunt … cum 
leporis coagulo efficacissime ossa anguium, 30.122). Snake teeth cured 
toothaches (dens anguium adalligatus dolores mitigat, 30.26), and a 
snake heart, extracted from a live animal with the left hand, used 
as an amulet, helped with fever and paroxysms within three days. 
The heart of a snake would be consumed or carried on the body to 
aid teething in children. And wearing the right eye of a snake as an 
amulet was ostensibly effective for defluxions of the eyes, provided 
the snake was released afterwards (serpentis oculum dextrum adal-
ligatum contra epiphoras prodesse, si serpens viva dimittatur, 29.131). 
Pliny the Elder furthermore mentions the use of snake entrails as 
an effective treatment for wounds when applied directly (praeterea 
constat contra omnium ictus quamvis insanabiles ipsarum serpentium 
exta inposita auxiliari, 29.71). However, the entrails were generally 
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ADRIANA GRZELAK-KRZYMIANOWSKA46
removed because they were believed to contain poison; snake bile 
was believed to be particularly harmful.30
In the text of Nicholas of Poland, there is also a great deal of 
information on the use of snake meat. First, it is worth mentioning 
that he discusses the possibilities of its preparation in much greater 
detail. While in Pliny one had to do with raw meat, boiled or dried, 
according to his medieval Polish counterpart, snake meat could be 
boiled or fried. Nicholas tells precisely how snake meat should be 
prepared. First, one must wash the snake well and put it in a good 
wine with salt for an hour.31 Then, it should be cut into pieces, put 
in a bowl, and cooked in wine with spices.32 The snake could also be 
roasted.33 One was supposed to roast it until the bones were visible, 
but one had to be careful not to burn it. However, Nicholas wrote that 
not every snake is suitable for consumption.34 As explained in Expe-
rimenta, eating snake meat seemingly had many health-promoting 
properties. Nicholas devotes an entire section of his text to snakes, 
in which he not only encourages everyone to eat a snake from time 
to time,35 but also lists what that can help with:
Serpens enim comestus ab omni lepra futura preservat et presentem 
palliat, iuventutem et bonum colorem suoer omnes medicinas con-
servat, ab omni canicie custodit, oculos clarificat, a caduco morbo 
30 Snake bile, however, had positive properties. The gall of the boa was highly 
 vaunted for the cure of albugo and cataracts upon the eyes (Plin., HN 29.38).
31 Pliny also refers to the storage and preparation of snakes in wine and salt. It is 
interesting to note that, according to the author of Naturalis Historia, the very 
salt in which the snake was stored or prepared has medicinal properties and 
helps, for example, in the treatment of ulcers (Plin., HN 30.39).
32 “Postea incide frustratim, et pone in poto, et decoquas in duabus partibus vini; 
et postquam bene coctum fuerit, condias brodium cum bonis speciebus et sic 
comedes et aliis dabis” (Exp. 4.1).
33 “Vel si vis assare, assa tantum, quod ossa incipient apparere, non tamen com-
burendo, et tunc poteris comedere. Vel si vis, assa tantum, quod possis in mor-
tario pulverizari.” (Exp. 4.2). Nicholas recommends that this dish, prepared 
this way, be served at every meal, especially to kings, leaders, and other nobles 
because of their merit and horror (propter honorem vel horrorem).
34 According to Nicholas of Poland, only mountain snakes, pet snakes, and those 
with a white belly and black back can be eaten. One should not eat snakes that 
are blind (the blindworm was believed to be the most venomous of all snakes), 
have a lot of tails, and dragons, which is also linked to tradition (Exp. 4.4).
35 “Et breviter secundum doctrinam Fratris Nicolai omni homini, in quocunque 
statu sit, expedit, ut serpentem, quocunque tempore habere possit, comedat” 
(Exp. 4.3).
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PLINY THE ELDER AND NICHOLAS OF POLAND 47
future preservat, caput purgat, ab omni infirmitate gravi et longa 
custodit, morpheas et scabies et omnes infirmitates similes supradicto 
modo comestus expellit. (Exp. 4.3)
For the consumption of the serpent, if it is consumed in the manner 
described above, protects from all future leprosy and expels the 
present one, preserves youth and a good complexion better than 
any medicine, insures against all gray hair, removes the clouding 
of eyes, protects from future epilepsy, cleanses the head, saves from 
all severe and prolonged illnesses, expels leprosy and scab and all 
similar diseases.
In addition, consumption or indirect ingestion of snake meat was 
supposed to help with deafness (a surditate liberat, Exp. 4.5), which 
is why people should feed snakes to hens or geese (pullos et anseres, 
Exp. 4.6). The consumption of storks (ciconie, Exp. 4.7) was described 
as having a similar effect, as these feed on toads and snakes.36
Pliny the Elder also cites the ancients’ beliefs about the health-
-promoting properties of fat extracted from vipers and snakes. Pre-
sumedly, snake fat could effectively treat burns (ambustis … medetur 
… adips viperinus, 30.109), and when massaged into the feet, it would 
help with gout (sale quidam cum vipera crematus in olla nova saepius 
sumpto aiunt podagra liberari, utile esse et adipe viperino pedes perungui, 
30.77). Snake fat mixed with oil or wax, added to drink, or eaten was 
allegedly an excellent treatment for ulcerated scrofula (cocleae cum 
testa sua tusae inlinuntur, maxime quae frutectis adhaerent, item cinis 
aspidum cum sebo taurino inponitur, anguinus adeps mixtus oleos, iem 
anguium cinis ex oleo inlitus vel cum cera, 30.37). Viper fat and snake 
fat were used as an eye ointment (cf. 29.119). Viper’s fat boiled with one 
sextarius of olive oil and added to a person’s body would seemingly 
repel all kinds of harmful animals (quidam purgatae ut supra dictum 
est adipem cum olei sextario decocunt ad dimidias. ex eo, cum opus sit, 
ternis stillis additis in oleum perunguntur ut omnes bestiae fugiant eos, 
29.70). Dragon’s fat dried in the sun would conceivably also help with 
ulcers (draconum quoque adeps siccatus in sole magnopere prodest, 
30.117), and rubbing oneself morning and evening – as Pliny writes 
about the magical beliefs of some healers – with a dragon’s tongue, 
eyes, bile, and intestines cooked in oil and cooled outside at night was 
supposed to help with delirium and nightmares (rursus Magi tradunt 
… eos vero qui a nocturnis diis Faunisque agitentur draconis lingua 
36 Cf. also Plin., HN 29.105, 10.62.
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ADRIANA GRZELAK-KRZYMIANOWSKA48
et oculis et felle intestinisque in vino et oleo decoctis ac sub diu nocte 
refrigeratis perunetionibus matutinis vesperitinisque liberari, 30.84). 
Nicholas of Poland, similarly to Pliny the Elder, stated that if fat 
was rubbed around the eyelids, it would cure flushing and blotchiness 
and all disease, and remove cloudy eyes.
Arvina vero serpentis omnem rubedinem recentem et maculam et 
omnes infirmitates oculorum cito curatl iuncta circ palpebras oculos 
etiam supra modum  clarificat. (Exp. 4.13)
And the serpentine fat cures all erythema and spots and all diseases 
of the eyes quickly if it is rubbed near the eyelids, and it removes the 
clouding of the eyes in an extraordinary way.
In Chapter 5 of the Experimenta, a way to prepare snakeskin ointment 
is given, and there is a description of its applications. To prepare it, 
one was supposed to take two, three, or four live snakes, put them in 
a new clay37 pot on the bottom, and fill the pot with butter, made in 
May. One would then cover it with a lid and seal it with strong batter 
so that nothing could evaporate. Only a small hole at the front could 
be left uncovered. Then, the pot would be placed over heat and cooked 
for half a day. The butter would be strained through a linseed sheet 
and what was left of the snakes would be crushed in a mortar, strained 
again, and mixed. Finally, the mixture would be cooled and stored in 
silver, gold, or glass boxes so that it would not evaporate. The longer 
one aged the ointment, all the way up to 40 years, the more valuable it 
would become (Exp. 5). The properties of a mixture thus prepared were 
supposed to be many. First, it presumably helped treat rheumatism 
and paralysis in the area where it was rubbed.
De isto unguento infirmus, paciens guttam vel paralysim in quocunque 
loco, ungat ad ignem frequenter et evadet absquae dubio. (Exp. 5)
If you suffer from rheumatism or paralysis in any part of your body, 
use this ointment to rub yourself frequently by the fire, and you will 
undoubtedly be cured.
In Pliny the Elder, remedies from vipers and snakes also appear in the 
form of ointments prepared from fat (cf. 29.119) or from reptile ashes 
mixed with oil (cf. 29.121). A gripping passage in Historia Naturalis 
37 A new earthenware vessel is also used in Pliny (HN 30.12).
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PLINY THE ELDER AND NICHOLAS OF POLAND 49
describes how to prepare a cure for eye diseases. According to Pliny, 
one was supposed to leave the adder in an earthenware vessel until 
it rotted and then mash it with saffron and with the worms that had 
nested in it (viperam vivam in fictili novo comburere addito feniculi suco 
ad eyathum unum et turis manna una, atque ita suffusiones oculorum 
et caligines inunguere utilissimum est, 29.119). An ointment containing 
snake powder was also seen as effective in treating wounds (cf. 29.70). 
In Pliny’s work, a use of snake products appears which is not found 
in Experimenta, namely fumigation with dried snake, which is likely 
to have an emmenagogue effect (anguis inveterati suffitu menstrua 
adiuvant, 30.128). In Experimenta attributed to Nicholas of Poland, 
snake blood still appears as essential for women and beauty. Snake’s 
blood was used to rub the face like a lotion, professedly letting the 
skin remain beautiful with no spots. It also allegedly removed the 
unpleasant odor of teeth and gums.
Sanguis autem serpentis plus valet quam balsamum: quia labia 
linita ex eo domicelle rubicunda facit valde. Facies etiam linita hoc 
sanguine nullam maculam recipit, faciem pulcram, rubicundam et 
serenam reddit, omnem scabiem non solum in facie, verum etiam 
in toto corpore, ubicunque linitum fuerit, (aufert); tollit et fetorem 
dentibus et gingivis, ubi cum inunxeris. Ista omnia domine multum 
diligent, et sunt vera sicut probavi. (Exp. 4.12)
And the blood of a snake is worth more than a lotion because the lips 
of a maiden anointed with it redden very much. A face anointed with 
this blood does not receive any stains; it gives the face frothiness, 
redness, and cheerfulness, banishes any scab not only from the face 
but also from the whole body, wherever it is rubbed, and abolishes 
the unpleasant smell of teeth and gums if only you rub them with it. 
All this the ladies like very much, and it is true, as I have tried it out.
As one can imagine, Nicholas of Poland’s text must have provoked 
various emotions; the methods of treatment and healing he promo-
ted among the people of Lesser Poland, might not have been entirely 
new and original, but they were nevertheless controversial. Although 
his method fuit abhominabilis omni populo, even “Lord Leszek, the 
duke of Sieradz, along with his wife Griffine … began to eat serpents, 
lizards and frogs, because … they were efficacious medicaments.”38
38 Bielowski, “Rocznik Traski” (dominus eciam Lestco dux Syradie cum uxore sua 
Griphina … cepit comedere serpentes, lacertas et ranas).
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ADRIANA GRZELAK-KRZYMIANOWSKA50
Despite the development of medical thought and knowledge in the 
centuries separating them, both Pliny and Nicholas of Poland present 
remarkably similar medicines derived from snakes and vipers. Both 
described how to prepare serpent powders, how to prepare serpent 
meat for consumption, how to make serpent ointments, pills, and 
compresses from serpent powder or fat. All parts of these reptiles, 
their guts, skin, organs, slough, fat, teeth, or blood, were used in phar-
macology. Both Pliny and Nicholas of Poland even seem to have had 
similar aims in describing the different types of serpent medicines. 
Pliny clearly states that he aims to benefit humans:
Quid ergo? dixerimus herbas et florum imagines ac pleraque inventu 
rara ac difficilia, iidem tacebimus quid in ipso homine prosit homini 
ceteraque genera remediorum inter nos viventia, cum praesertim 
nisi carenti doloribus morbisque vita  ipsa poena fiat? minime vero, 
omnemque insumemus operam, licet fastidii periculum urgeat, 
quando ita decretum est, minorem gratiae quam utilitatium vitae 
respectum habere. (Plin., HN 28.1)
Well then, shall I, who have described plants and forms of flowers, 
including many rare things that are difficult to find, say nothing 
about the benefits to man that are to be found in man himself, no-
thing about the other kinds of remedies that live among us, especially 
as life itself becomes a punishment for those who are not free from 
pains and diseases? Indeed, I must, and I shall devote all my care 
to the task, although I realize the risk of causing disgust since it is 
my fixed determination to have less regard for popularity than for 
benefiting human life. 
Nicholas, on the other hand, wanted to develop an extraordinary 
medical art that could work miracles and help relieve all ailments. 
He asserted that by treating diseases among various nations, he was 
doing admirable things and performing miracles (in pluribus natio-
nibus morbos curando mira ac stupenda gessi).39 Thus, both authors 
showed remedies that were supposedly useful in everything from 
aiding childbirth to inducing bleeding and that would ostensibly cure 
a myriad of illnesses, ailments, and defects, including eye diseases, ear 
problems, deafness, all skin lesions and wounds, lice, burns, dental or 
hair problems, gastric problems, ulcers, stones, diseases of the anus, 
rheumatism, paralysis, gout, and epilepsy. As magical medicine was 
39 Antipocras in Ganszyniec, Brata Mikołaja z Polski Pisma, 44, v. 10.
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PLINY THE ELDER AND NICHOLAS OF POLAND 51
quite popular in Rome, it is not surprising that it is found in various 
forms in the texts of Pliny the Elder; however, this article has shown 
that similar recipes and advice were recorded under the name of Ni-
cholas of Poland centuries later. This way of magical thinking would 
survive for centuries to follow and would appear in Polish folk beliefs 
and medical recipes for snake snacks.40
40 Majewski, Wąż w mowie, 76–84; Wołoszyn, “Zrzuciłem duży kamień,” 375–87; 
Bartmiński, Dlaczego wąż nie ma nóg?
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ADRIANA GRZELAK-KRZYMIANOWSKA52
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ADRIANA GRZELAK-KRZYMIANOWSKA54
ABSTRACT
The paper aims to show how Pliny the Elder, in his Historia Naturalis, 
and Nicholas of Poland, in Experimenta, the medical treatise attributed 
to him, presented and described ways of preparing snakes for medi-
cal purposes. The paper explores the connections and relationships 
between these texts, primarily in terms of the instructions conveyed 
regarding the use of specific snake and viper products and the effects 
of their use on human health, including the many diseases known 
since antiquity that plagued Nicholas’ contemporaries.
KEYWoRdS: Pliny the Elder, Nicholas of Poland, snakes, medicine, 
Dominicans, Silesia
Plinij Starejši in Nikolaj Poljski o pripravkih iz kač  
in njihovi uporabi v medicini  
 
IZVLEČEK 
Članek se osredotoča na to, kako sta Plinij Starejši v svojem delu Hi-
storia Naturalis in Nikolaj Poljski v njemu pripisanem medicinskem 
traktatu Experimenta predstavila in opisala načine za pripravo kač v 
medicinske namene. Razprava razišče povezave in stične točke med 
obema besediloma, predvsem v smislu njunih navodil za uporabo 
pripravkov iz kač ter učinkov njihove rabe na zdravje ljudi, ter obrav-
nava vrsto bolezni, znanih že v antiki, ki so pestile tudi Nikolajeve 
sodobnike.
KLJUČNE BESEdE: Plinij Starejši, Nikolaj Poljski, kače, medicina, 
dominikanci, Šlezija
CLOTHO 12 (4).indd   54 1. 03. 2024   10:36:01