Page 52 - Studia Universitatis Hereditati, vol 13(1) (2025)

liquids and incense, with which the room and with the pungent scents just mentioned and
the whole house were to be fumigated so that the second time with the so-called sweet
the germs would stop and the risk of infection fragrance, which is obtained from a mix-
would decrease.’ (Meško 1931). ture of frankincense, myrtle, sage, rose-
In Croatia, popular belief in connection mary and juniper berries. With this second
with the epidemic also included the belief that scent, the task of deodorising the house is
smoke and ashes could cleanse from disease, complete. Although all things can be com-
and so things were often ‘cleansed’ with ashes or pletely dissolved by boiling, soaking or air-
smoke (Skenderović 2003, 169). Although med- ing, some people, out of excessive fear, allow
icine already knew a great deal about the plague all or most of these things that could oth-
in the eighteenth century, people saw the occur- erwise be saved to burn. Using fire is really
rence of the epidemic as the hand of God punish- the most complete and quickest way that is
52 ing them for their sins. This view was supported more than safe. In this way, even the largest
by the court itself, so that numerous royal letters house can be completely and perfectly dis-
also spoke of God’s punishment and called on infected in a few hours, and the whole city
studia universitatis hereditati, letnik 13 (2025), številka 1 / volume 13 (2025), number 1
subjects to repent and lead a moral life. Along- in a few days, so that it would not have to be
side this belief, which was supported by both the subjected in any way to the health measures
official government and the church, there were of the city. What I feared most was the dan-
also many superstitions in which some character- ger of a fire breaking out because the beams
istic beliefs emerged that had ancient, pre-Chris- had caught fire and the rooms were filled
tian roots. Examples of purification with smoke with smoke. The fire that I feared so much
and ashes were everywhere, so it seems that this had actually already broken out. So, if I had
method was also accepted by the official author- not come at the right time and warned the
ities at the time. The houses of the infected were others, the fire would have spread quickly
often burnt, but the authorities simply sprayed because of all the things that had accumu-
some houses with vinegar, which was apparent- lated and the constant wind.
ly believed to destroy the infection (pp. 168, 169). Another method of sanitising the air, which
The Capuchin monk Fedele from Zadar de-
scribed in great detail the disinfection methods Father Fedele mentions with great reluctance, is
used to combat the plague in Split, Croatia, be- the following (Donadini 1988, 84):
tween 1783 and 1784, when the city was com- Instead of the laborious and manifold fu-
pletely isolated for fifteen and a half months migation of houses, it would suffice for this
(Donadini 1988). These methods included var- purpose to expose the room to the evapo-
ious forms of fumigation of the rooms. Fedele ration and fumigation of quicklime thrown
writes (Donadini 1988, 79): into water. Moreover, this lime dipped in
water can later be used to whitewash the
When the house is empty, the cobwebs are walls. And immediately there are extraor-
removed, the house is swept and all the dinary savings, not only in time and effort,
rooms are exposed to the so-called pun- but also in so many additional resources
gent odours of incense for two days, with used today for this purpose, and finally in
the doors and windows completely closed. the firewood used when fumigating hous-
These scents are obtained by placing tarred es. At the same time, we have got rid of the
ribbons, sulphur and cow hooves in the danger of a fire which had already affect-
burners. The whole house is then white- ed one house here and would have spread
washed with lime and, after drying, in- to the whole street if the usual strong wind
censed twice more with scents, the first time had blown that night.