Gloomy Feast: Cannibalism in the Middle Ages

«Gloomy Feast: Cannibalism in the Middle Ages» — a unique study of the life of the medieval person, filled with cruelty and numerous dangers: wars, diseases, poverty, and hunger, pushing people to chilling deeds and horrific crimes. Based on numerous... sources, including chronicles, annals, city records, and travel notes, the author discusses the causes of cannibalism that spread across Europe from the 5th to the 16th centuries. This terrifying tradition took root in many spheres of medieval society. It helped combat hunger and played a key role in medieval medicine, as evidenced by the vast number of pharmacological books and recipes featuring the mysterious ingredient «mummy». Elements of cannibalism can be found in the medieval system of punishments and even in Christianity. Angelica Montanari describes that taboo and often attributed to ancient and «barbaric» cultures custom, which actually lies within the very heart of European culture.