In the Middle Ages the figure of the leper had more than one meaning.

In the collective imagination the leper represented, in the Middle Ages, the tremendous and upsetting drama of the everyday social life. When, in the 11^th century, leprosy spread over western Europe stronger than in the past, it was not perceived as a disease, but it turned into a symbol: the leper represented the men whose body was wholly disfigured by sin. In the 12^th century the birth increase, the pilgrimages, the crusades and the countless business trips had infected both the West and the East, so the problem of leprosy and of lepers appeared in a catastrophic way to the whole community.
Then the construction of leprosariums began, where the sufferings were took in and given the basic healthcare for their survival, which sometimes could even be long. The people engaged in the countless foundations were often lays, but even religious gave their help.