The Plague Doctor’s Beaked Armor

In 1619, Europe fought the deadliest disease it had ever known—by dressing doctors

like birds. The beaked plague doctor mask wasn’t decoration. It was medical equipment.

The design is credited to Charles de Lorme, chief physician to King Louis XIII of France,

during repeated outbreaks of bubonic plague. At the time, doctors believed

disease spread through “miasma”—poisoned air. The long beak was hollow and packed

with herbs like lavender, rosemary, camphor, and myrrh.

These were meant to filter deadly air before it reached the lungs. The glass eye lenses

protected against infection. The waxed leather coat, gloves,