Introduction -- From Goddess to Sorceress: women healers in Assyria, Egypt, Greece, and Rome -- From Sorceress to Witch: the old wife in medieval Europe and seventeenth-century England -- From Expert to Charlatan: the old wife and the medical profession in eighteenth-century England -- Alternatives for the Sick: the old wife and the sick poor in nineteenth and twentieth century England -- Conclusions: perspectives on the medical profession and the old wife -- Introduction to Remedies -- Remedies -- Index