‘The Choice of Places to dwell in’: Lord Bacon's controlled experiments on ‘putrefaction’ and ‘the Disposition of the Aire’ (pre-1626)

Introduction Lord Francis Bacon's (1561–1626) was fascinated by the phenomenon of ‘putrefaction’, which he saw in ‘moulds’ on food, ‘mosse…of the Earth, and Trees’ and the process of disease in living creatures. By observing the development of mould, Bacon deduced that certain ‘aires’ and ‘seats’ (places) were more healthy than others. Aim To interpret Bacon's ideas about putrefaction. Method Qualitative examination of Bacon's texts, especially ‘Sylva Sylvarum’. Results Bacon proposes comparing the speed of putrefaction between pieces of ‘raw flesh’ of the ‘same Kinde and Bignesse’ in different settings: ‘within Doores’ and ‘abroad outside’ as well as ‘some height above the Earth’ and ‘upon the Flat i.e. surface of the Earth’. Thus, Bacon sought to identify more healthy ‘seats of dwelling’ …‘for residential Lodges, and Retiring Places for Health’. Conclusion Bacon's experiments represent early landmarks in two fields of medical research: evidence-based public health measures to improve housing and (by calculating ‘post-mortem interval’) forensic pathology. These contributions appear to have been overlooked, despite informing Sir John Pringle's 1752 treatise on military medicine. Bacon called for ‘new learning’ and his forensic approach highlights a need to engender the ‘medical detective’ in modern students of medicine.