title: [An hour with Venus-a life with Mercur].
abstract: In 1857 the police doctor in Copenhagen received an anonymous letter from a gentleman. He wants the physician to write a popular book about syphilis and describe how men, who were infected could treat themselves. Regarding to the letter this paper examines how the authorities and the danish physicians tried to stop the disease in the 1850's and to see how physicians were arguing for the regular prostitution in the city. The disease was spreadening very rapidly in these years and the physicians were very concerned about the new growing up population -the children, who also were suffering from the disease. No proper treatment was available in the 1850's. The severe cases were still treated with mercury like in the Middle Ages.
authors.forename: Bodil
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Haarmark
mesh_terms: D003718:Denmark; D049672:History, 19th Century; D008628:Mercury / Q000266:history*; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000266:history*; D013587:Syphilis / Q000266:history*
chemical_list: D008628:Mercury