Abortion

“the dominance of humoral medicine meant that the remedies provided to woman without periods and a woman with an unwanted pregnancy were often very similar,” indeed often the same. “Surgical abortions are even harder to detect . . . By far the most common approaches seem to have been herbal remedies (usually taken in drinks) and physical trauma, especially punching in the stomach.” Many remedies were self-administered, “without recourse to medical help” (K. Harvey, 113-114).