To Cure A Canker In The Mouth Or The Mouth Any Waye Soare

This recipe originates from a family manuscript of the Granville family, dated approximately between 1640 and 1750. In this period, medical recipes often circulated in household compilation books, some written by women of the elite or gentry households responsible for family health. Sores and cankers in the mouth (likely aphthous ulcers) were a common complaint, and householders would turn to such tried-and-tested remedies that relied on available apothecary ingredients. The blending of honey and alum shows a strong awareness of natural antiseptics and astringents used to treat wounds before the discovery of antibiotics. Metallurgy was respected in early-modern England, with pewter and silverware indicating higher social status and a belief in their purifying virtues—here invoked in the preparation process.

Historically, the mixture would have been prepared in a pewter or silver dish—a sign of both wealth and medicinal purity, as metals were considered to have curative properties. The key tool was an iron rod or the end of a metal utensil (such as a tongue depressor or similar stick), which was heated until red-hot in the fire, then used to stir and partially cook the mixture—harnessing both heat and chemical reaction. Application would be with a small scrap of clean linen rag, wound around a stick or rod, to precisely dab the mixture onto the mouth sores. Open-hearth fires would have provided the necessary heat for the tasks.