herbwife & history, part IX, I think

If we demolish the feminist ideal of the herbalist-witch-healer, we can replace it with a larger more diverse idea of healers, based on the historical record.
Even if we restrict ourselves only to female practicioners, there may not have been many, but they were fairly diverse.
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This greater diversity of practitioners is reflected in children's books such as those by Karen Cushman (The Midwife's Apprentice and Matilda Bone).

Penn State Medieval Studies Conference

Just checked the Penn State Center for Medieval Studies page, and their
conference for 2007 will have the theme:
The Grail, the Quest, & the World of King Arthur
Dates: March 30-31, 2007
Cost: $25 for the two-day conference

More information: http://www.psu.edu/dept/medieval/2007conference.html

I went to the one on the medieval garden several years ago and it was
amazingly good. So, if you live within a relatively good travel distance
and are interested in the subject, I suspect it will be well worth the
time.