The Herbal : Medicine or Magic
The Herbal : Medicine or Magic
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Herbals are a type of botanical book that describe the properties and uses of various plants. Herbals are closely related to the history of medicine as they are primarily focused on the medicinal properties and uses of plants. In the early medieval period, the leading authorities on herbalism were works from classical antiquity, such as Historia de Plantis and De Causis Plantarum by Theophrastus (ca. 372-288 BCE), and De Materia Medica (ca. 65 CE) by Dioscorides. Later in the medieval period, authors began to update information based on their own observations and added entries for new plants that had not been included in classical texts. The introduction of the printing press dramatically increased the use and circulation of herbals by making them easier and cheaper to produce. Printing technology also allowed entries to be accompanied by accurate woodcut illustrations, which greatly aided plant identification and helped grow the body of herbal knowledge.
Herbal lore was collected and practiced by both learned scholars and everyday people. For example, medieval Benedictine monasteries were local centers of medical knowledge, where monks copied classical herbal and medical texts to preserve ancient knowledge, and kept their own gardens of medical herbs. Herbal knowledge was also used by local 'wise' women or men who gained and passed on plant lore through oral traditions and personal experimentation.
The Mount Royal University Archives and Special Collections is fortunate to have a complete herbal from 1633 in our collection. The Herball, also known as A Generall Historie of Plantes or Gerarde's Herball, was authored by the English herbalist John Gerard and first published in 1597 with illustrations by John Payne. Our copy is a second edition of the work and was enlarged and amended by Thomas Johnson. The book contains over 2700 detailed woodcut illustrations and descriptions of the characteristics, growing conditions, and used of hundreds of plants. This display features some of most deadly and fearsome plants known to early modern readers.
Ergot: Claviceps Purpuae, St.Anthony's Fire
Ergot: Claviceps Purpuae, St.Anthony's Fire
Ergot is a parasitic fungus that grows on cereal crops such as rye, wheat, and barley. While technically fungi are not plants, ergot deserves an honorable mention in this display because of the panic and disorder it can cause.
Ergot develops on crops that are grown or stored in damp conditions. It is particularly insidious because, aside from a hard mass that contains spores called a sclerotium, ergot accurately mimics the host plant, making it very difficult to identify infected crops. When infected cereal crops are consumed, ergot produces an alkaloid called lysergic acid that causes a host of unpleasant symptoms: constricted blood vessels, seizures, nausea, gangrenous blisters, hysteria, hallucinations, contractions of the uterus, and a crawling sensation on or under the skin.
Entry for Rie (Rye) from QK41 .G47 1633 - The Herball, or Generall Historie of Plantes, page 68.
Accounts of ergot poisoning have been recorded since ancient times, with early references on an Assyrian tablet from 600 BCE. Bouts of ergotism continually plagued Medieval Europe, usually corresponding to periods of drought and famine. Medieval chroniclers referred to outbreaks of ergot poisonings as St. Anthony's Fire, both because of the burning sensation experienced by victims, and in reference to the saint who was believed to offer relief to sufferers. Ergot poisonings are also believed to have been responsible for instances of Dancing Mania that overtook several European towns and villages between the 14th and 17th centuries.
Two recipes for treating St. Anthony's Fire from A collection of above three hundred receipts in cookery, physick, and surgery : for the use of all good wives, tender mothers, and careful nurses (TX705.C65 1734), published in 1734 by the executrix of Mary Kettilby.
Deadly Nightshade: Atropa Belladonna, belladonna, Devil's cherry, dwale
Deadly Nightshade: Atropa Belladonna, belladonna, Devil's cherry, dwale
Nightshade gets its Latin name, Atropa, from the Greek fate Atropa who was responsible for bringing death to mortals by cutting the thread of life. The fateful name hints at the potential dangers of dabbling with nightshades. There are many varieties of nightshade that grow throughout Europe, North America, and Asia. Some, such as the common tomato and potato, are harmless, but others anything but.
Deadly Nightshade is a particularly toxic variety that has a fearsome reputation. It is an attractive plant, growing up to three feet tall with pointed oval-shaped leaves, purple/brown tube-like flowers, and brightly coloured berries. The berries progress in colour from green, to red, and finally a dense shiny black. All parts of the plant are toxic. Skin contact alone can cause irritation and pustules, and consumption of the plant produces the alkaloid atropine that causes hallucinations, headaches, delusions, rapid heart rate, confusion, seizures, meaningless speech, and death.
Image of Sleepy Nightshade, p. 338-339. Gerarde claims that this nightshade can cause sleepiness "even unto death" but recommends its use for all illnesses that require cooling and binding such as headaches, a burning heart, heat in the stomach, and "sharp and biting humors." Gerarde also mentions that Garden and Sleepy Nightshades have been prescribed to treat St. Anthony's Fire.
Image of Bindeweed or Enchanter's Nightshade, p. 350-351. While not actually a true nightshade, Gerarde mentions that Enchanter's Nightshade was frequently confused with the similar-looking and far more deadly mandrake. Enchanter's Nightshade is named after the Greek witch Circe and was used to treat wounds.
Image of Deadly Nightshade, page 340. The most deadly of the nightshdes, this variety can be rightly blamed for the genus' fearsome reputation. Even though Gerarde describes the plant as "a great beautie," he recommends banishing it from the garden altogether because it was known to "causeth sleep, troubleth the mind, [and] bringeth madness..." after eating only a few berries.
Image of Bittersweet or Woody nightshade, page 350. The author states that a decoction of the leaves are used for stoppages of the liver, gall, and spleen and to treat yellow jaundice. The juice was used for bad bruising and cleaning away congealed internal blood.
Image of Garden or Black Nightshade, page 338-339. Gerarde's Herbal contains the first published mention of this nightshade variety, later renamed Solanum Nigrum by Linnaeus. The toxicity of this variety is debated. Some people consume the leaves and ripe berries without incident, but the green, unripened berries have been linked to a host of unpleasant symptoms.
Nightshades have a long association with witchcraft and sorcery. Witches were accused of mixing deadly nightshade with henbane, mandrake, and the fat of an infant to create a flying ointment that they would rub on their skin or a broomstick.
Mandrake: Mandragora Officinarum, mandragora, Satan's apple, love apples
Mandrake: Mandragora Officinarum, mandragora, Satan's apple, love apples
Illustration of a mandrake from a herbal reproduced on a lantern slide, ca.1930. MRU- Archives and Special Collections - Lantern Slide Collection - #L432
The mandrake is another member of the nightshade family that has received a lot of attention in herbals, witchcraft lore, and superstition. The mandrake became associated with witchcraft because of its powerful narcotic effect and the strangely intriguing shape of its roots. It is listed as an ingredient in witchy concoctions such as love potions and the flying ointment above.
Mandrakes are native to Europe and grow in open sunny areas such as fields. Above ground, the mandrake appears unremarkable, with a rosette of leaves, short-lived pale green flowers, and small yellow fruit that look like an under-ripe tomato. The roots, however, branch into many twisted hairy forks described as looking like a wrinkled man or woman.
Woodcut of the male and female mandrake from The Herball, or Generall Historie of Plantes, page 351-352.
One of the most commonly repeated myths about the mandrake is that its human-shaped roots will shriek with enough ferocity to kill when it is being unearthed. Gerarde repeats this fable but dismisses it as utter nonsense and the tale of old wives.
Despite the fact that the mandrake has been described as the most famous magical plant in history, it is considerably less poisonous than other members of the nightshade family. The leaves, roots, and fruit all contain soporific alkaloids that slow the nervous system and induce a deep dreamless sleep that can lead to a coma in large doses. Gerarde recommends using mandrakes to cause deep sleep, treat pain in the stomach and eyes, cool hot swellings and inflammation, and to draw a dead child from the womb.
Henbane: Hyoscyamus Niger, fetid nightshade, hog'sbean
Henbane: Hyoscyamus Niger, fetid nightshade, hog'sbean
Henbane is another plant that has been historically associated with witchcraft. The plant is native to the Mediterranean, Europe, and North Africa, and grows well in temperate climates. Henbane reaches about two feet in height, produces yellow flowers with purple-black veins, and is known for its terrible odor. There are several varieties of henbane, but Black Henbane is described as being potent enough to cause insanity.
Images of black and white henbane, pages 353-354. Henbane was believed to be a common ingredient in witches salves, mystic rituals like the witches' sabbath, and was possibly even used by the priestesses at the Oracle of Delphi to bring about prophetic visions.
Henbane seeds contains large quantities of the alkaloid scopolamine which produces an intoxicating effect. Henbane intoxication results in dizziness, sleepiness, vision problems, and a mounting pressure in the head that leads to unconsciousness marred by disturbing dreams and visual hallucinations. For the most unlucky, henbane can cause permanent mania or death.
Despite its dangerous qualities and association with witchcraft, henbane was still widely recognized by Medieval herbalists for its use as a pain killer. Gerarde recommends its use for all kinds of pain and especially for "bleeding and the disease in women... and the tumors of womens brests".
Poison Hemlock: Conium Maculatum, spotted parsley, poison snakeweed
Poison Hemlock: Conium Maculatum, spotted parsley, poison snakeweed
Hemlock is extremely toxic to humans and animals, and is well known for its fast-acting poison. Hemlock's most famous victim is the Greek philosopher Socrates, who was executed by consuming a drink of hemlock in 399 BCE, however, it has claimed many lives due to misidentification.
Hemlock is a close relative to carrots, parsnips, parsley, and fennel and has many attributes that mimic its harmless cousins. Hemlock regularly grows up to three meters tall, has a smooth stem with purple-red blotches, and fern-like or 'lacy' looking leaves. Similar to wild carrots and parsley, the flowers of poison hemlock are white and form clusters that are umbrella shaped. The leaves, stems, flowers, fruits and roots are all poisonous if consumed and can cause skin and respiratory problems if touched or inhaled. Originally native to Europe and North Africa, poison hemlock has been naturalized all over the world.
Poison hemlock is yet another plant that was believed to part of the witch's ointment because of its psychoactive effects. The plant contains high quantities of several alkaloids, the most dominant being coniine. The toxic effects includes extremely rapid paralysis, a lack of sensation, and respiratory paralysis resulting in death.
Gerarde quotes Dioscorides in saying that hemlock is "a very evill, dangerous, hurtfull, and poysonous herbe... not to be applied outwardly, much lesse taken inwardly into the body". He concluded that it has no beneficial or medical qualities.
Hemlock, page 1061-1062
Learn more if you dare...
Learn more if you dare...
Published October 5, 2022
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