Some Renaissance Birth Control Methods*
- Heart ripped out of a live mouse and tied to the left arm
- Fat from the ‘secret’ parts of a lion, placed in ivory
- Worm removed from a mule’s womb and tied to any part of the body
- Mule’s womb fried and eaten without the woman’s knowledge**
- Mule stones wrapped in mule skin and tied to the body
- Harts-tongue and mule spleen tied to the body on a moonless night**
- Mule ears, carried
- Mule urine, drunk
- Left stone of a weasel tied in mule skin and left in a drink to steep
- Horse sweat soaked into wool and worn in the underwear**
- Spitting 3 times in a frog’s mouth (this lasts a year)
- Salamander heart strapped to the thigh (this seems more like a deterrent than a contraceptive. like a really disgusting chastity belt)
** permanent results
*these were unlikely to be in common use, since herbal remedies were far easier to obtain and far less unpleasant. also, every single one of Topsell’s sources was a man, so. that explains some things?