The various stalls and booths at the Spring Festival weren't just about medieval warfare or exploration. They also displayed what customs were held during those earlier times. For instance, the medical practices that had been used back then. Of course, while their idea of healing seemed sufficient back then, it was woefully inadequate compared to modern medicine.
One such booth that really displayed this was the one that was giving a detailed explanation for the Black Death, the infamous pandemic that cost the lives 75-200 million people between the years of 1346 and 1353. The booth included a map of Europe that showed the progress of the Black Death, a chart that showed the symptoms of the bubonic plague, and several medical instruments that were used in those times, though the latter seemed more like torture devices. The person manning the booth was dressed up like the infamous plague doctors, complete with black overcoat, a wide-brimmed hat to confirm his medical profession, and the iconic beak-nosed mask.
The booth drew the attention of more than a few Animalians. Among them were Janice and Walter Camberton as well as Mary and Jack Piper. The latter couple had gotten a few leery glances from other Animalians. While both of them had reformed and been acclimated to Animalian society, it would still be a long time before they were completely accepted. Or until the next crisis made people forget.
Currently, the plague doctor was explaining the design of the plague mask. "Back then, no one knew that diseases were caused by bacteria and viruses. Even the concept of cells didn't exist yet," said the doctor, "So people associated sickness with filth. With the Black Death, it was thought that the disease was spread by miasma or bad air. The doctors stuffed the beaks of their masks with dried flowers like roses, herbs like mint, spices, camphor, or a vinegar-soaked sponge. They were supposed to counter the 'evil' smells produced by the plague."
"So skunks were probably considered walking poison?" asked Jack, glancing at the skunk couple, who look visibly annoyed at that.
"Skunks aren't native to Europe," said Jane, "Ze closest zey 'ad to skunks were ferrets."
"It was the 'miasma' from the infected that was supposed to be harmful," said the plague doctor, "Granted, airborne viruses and bacteria aren't unheard of, but the real spreader of the disease wasn't from the air."
"Right, ze got ze disease from plague rats," said Jane, giving the rat couple an accusing look.
"From plague rat fleas," said Mary, "Not directly from the rats themselves. And for your information, they were black rats, not brown rats."
"What's the difference?" asked Walter.
"Brown rats are bigger," said Jack, "We're able to live in more urban areas because we're burrowers instead of being arboreal, as well as able to eat a wider variety of food and have better resistance to weather resistance. And we're more aggressive too."
"So why couldn't brown rats have carried the plague fleas?" asked Walter.
"Black rats were more likely to go on ships and travel to new lands," said Mary, "And maybe brown rats had a better resistance to the plague than black rats. In fact, the plague started to die down when brown rats started displacing black rats."
"That isn't a confirmed theory," said the plague doctor, "But back then, it was still though to have been caused by bad air, or night air as it was also known as."
"Is zat where zat old wives' tale came from?" asked Jane.
"Well, it was called 'night air' because of how it was dark and evil. It wasn't that they thought that the air would turn toxic at night," said the doctor, "But a lot wasn't known back then. Nobody was really sure where the plague was coming from. But unsurprisingly, there were a lot of people made scapegoats because of it, namely Jews."
"Jews have been kicked around for almost all history," remarked Mary, "At least it's better today than it was back then."
"However, there was a beneficial consequence because of the Black Death," said the plague doctor, "With a third of the population dead, the labor shortage meant an increase of wages, which in turn meant that the working class were better fed, wealthier, and had more surplus money to spend on luxuries. As the population rebounded, the bigger demand for goods and services created a growing class of bankers, merchants, and artisans. And the church's inability to stop the plague made people have less faith in the church so the church's influence waned as more businessmen started investing in art and culture. That paved the way for the start of modern science."
"So the Black Death led to the Italian Renaissance?" asked Mary.
"It was one of several factors, but a big factor," said the plague doctor.
That booth was certainly one of the most informative booths at the festival. Though it was understandably placed well away from the food stalls to preserve appetites.