Difficult labors were aided by burning resin, or massaging the abdomen by saffron powder and beer. The same tests have been used in Europe up till the Middle Ages.ĭelivery was performed in the squatting position, with the woman supporting her arms on knees and sitting on two bricks. If the child was a male, the urine would germinate wheat, and if a female, it would geminate barley. A test known to gynecologists as “Speck’s test”.ĭiagnosis of pregnancy and sex determination of the future child was based on the fact that pregnant urine germinates cereals more rapid then non-pregnant one. In modern medicine, phenolphthalein injected in the uterus would appear in urine based upon the same principle. Such connection would be lost in a case of obstructed Fallopian tubes. This is based upon the connection between the genital parts and interior of the body.
If the next day the woman can taste or smell it in her mouth, she is fertile. Fertility was diagnosed by placing garlic in the vagina for one night.
