In act I of Tartuffe, Orgon comes home and asks Dorine (Orgon’s daughter’s maid) if everyone was well while he was away. Dorine replies that Orgon’s wife, Elmire, was very ill while he was away and that she was so ill and feverish that she even had to be bled. Above is an image of a bleeding bowl from around this time. It was believed by physicians at the time that expelling the toxins in the blood by removal would rid the body of the illness. This resulted in a high mortality rate. Even so, they still continued with the practice until the late 19th century.

All images: Google image search.