Giovanni de Ventura was a municipal plague doctor for the town of Pavia.[1] He was a certified physician from a University and had a degree.[2]
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When Ventura negotiated a "spectacular" plague doctor contract in 1479 with the town of Pavia to treat plague patients he was fresh out of school and desired to start a medical career. He became a plague doctor for the city of Pavia, which involved a sixteen clause contract with the city.[3] The salary he received was 30 florins per month (plus full citizenship and a free house),[4] which was five to six times the salary of a skilled person of the time. The average skilled person earned about 60 florins per year, where Ventura received 360 florins per year.[2][5][6]
Ventura was also to receive an adequate completely furnished house in an adequate location with supplemental living costs. He also received a cash advance and a severance package when he left at the end of his contract which consisted of two month's pay. He was not to require a fee from a plague patient, since the town was paying him, unless they offered freely. If the town had too many plague victims that his salary was not obtainable, then he was free to leave with no further obligations. Likewise if he received pay and died before his normal services were performed, his heirs (perhaps parents) were not obligated to return any of that advanced pay.[7]
The most important of the "benefits" of his contract with the city was a full town citizenship, as he had immigrated to the area from the countryside. He was not initially a town citizen. This gave him the possibility of setting up a more lucrative practice in the city after his contract ended. This benefit was the most attractive to him. In return for the contract benefits he was to treat and take care of all plague and infectious patients of the town. He was to see the plague patients two or three times per day or more if necessary. Ventura was not to go around the city unless escorted by a designated city member - so as not to spread the contagious disease. Ventura could see only bubonic plague patients and was prohibited from seeing other patients with other illnesses.[8] This was covered in Clause 16 of his 1479 contract with the city of Pavia:
| “ | Master Giovanni should not be allowed to move around the city in order to treat patients unless accompanied by a man especially designated by the Community.[5][9] | ” |
As a professional doctor of that time Ventura was to uphold certain standards. These included ethical codes and professional dress. He was to be well mannered, bold, cautionary of dangers, and not practice false cures. Additionally Ventura was expected to be friendly, cordial, polite, compassionate, chaste, sober and merciful. He was to work with his colleagues and be kindhearted to them. He was also to be wise and professional in his prognostications. Likewise he was not to be greedy for money. His dress was to be like that of a professional clerk of the time. He was not to swear or use bad language and was not allowed to double talk or give ambiguous answers. In addition Ventura was to be courteous at the city major's table and kind to the guests. He was to be a man of few words. Ventura was to treat his patients with dignity and high moral standards, especially his female patients. He was not to have chit-chat conversations with the mistress of the house, the daughter, or the female servants.[10]
Because of the protective suit he would have worn in his role as a plague doctor, he would have been known also as a "Beak Doctor". [11] The beak doctor costume consisted of a heavy fabric overcoat that was oiled or waxed, a mask of glassed eye openings and a cone shaped like a beak to hold scented substances.[12] A wooden cane pointer was used to help examine the patient without touching.[13]
Historian Carlo M. Cipollia speculates that Ventura did not have a family himself. While there are no records to show one way or the other, he thinks that in all likelihood Ventura did not have a wife or any children. This speculation is based on Clause 4 of the 1479 Contract that does not seem to indicate a house for a family. However there is indications that perhaps he had living parents by Clause 8. This clause stipulates that should there be advance pay and Ventura were to die before the services were fulfilled for this pay, then his heirs shall not be required to make restitution of any part of his salary that might remain unearned.[14]