Uploaded February 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Thanks to tell-tale stains on the parchment, we've been able to examine the proteins left behind.
Using a new technique, a protein scientist collected and analyzed tiny particles from the scroll. The discovery?
Milk, egg, honey, legumes, and cereals – all used in medical contexts. But most significantly, they found cervicovaginal fluids, suggesting this rare parchment was once used during childbirth and pregnancy.
While we're cautious about using the word "proof," this is as close as you can get to knowing this scroll protected expectant mothers.
Plan your visit to Expecting: Birth, Belief and Protection, open until April: wellcomecollection.org/exhibitions/expecting-birth-belief-and-protection
Alt text: this video features Dr Kierri Price and Dr Elma Brenner discussing a 500-year-old parchment scroll in our collection. The presenters, standing in our Reading Room, mark up a replica of the scroll to show curious stains on its fragile surface. Elma explains how scientific analysis of these stains has revealed extraordinary details about how the scroll may have been used in childbirth.
Credit: MS.632. Wellcome Collection
Thanks to tell-tale stains on the parchment, we've been able to examine the proteins left behind.
Using a new technique, a protein scientist collected and analyzed tiny particles from the scroll. The discovery?
Milk, egg, honey, legumes, and cereals – all used in medical contexts. But most significantly, they found cervicovaginal fluids, suggesting this rare parchment was once used during childbirth and pregnancy.
While we're cautious about using the word "proof," this is as close as you can get to knowing this scroll protected expectant mothers.
Plan your visit to Expecting: Birth, Belief and Protection, open until April: wellcomecollection.org/exhibitions/expecting-birth-belief-and-protection
Alt text: this video features Dr Kierri Price and Dr Elma Brenner discussing a 500-year-old parchment scroll in our collection. The presenters, standing in our Reading Room, mark up a replica of the scroll to show curious stains on its fragile surface. Elma explains how scientific analysis of these stains has revealed extraordinary details about how the scroll may have been used in childbirth.
Credit: MS.632. Wellcome Collection
