‚Erfindung‘ des unfruchtbaren Greises? Überlegungen zur vormodernen Diskussion um männliche Alterssterilität und -impotenz

Abstract

Sterility and impotence in older men is a topic that has been mentioned repeatedly in religious and literary texts since antiquity. In natural philosophy and medicine, however, we find only a few direct references until the High Middle Ages. This gradually changed until the 17th century. However, a broad medical discussion was not developed until around 1650 in Paolo Zacchia’s ‘Quaestiones medico-legales.’ First, the article traces the various traditions of knowledge on this topic over the centuries. Second, it examines the possible reasons why it was only marginally taken up and what brought about the turnaround in the 12th and 17th centuries. An interaction between traditional secular and canonical marriage law on the one hand and the medical assessment of reproductive disorders on the other is discussed.