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  • L. Fuchs, De historia stirpium commentarii
  • L. Fuchs, Neu Kreuterbuch, in welchem nit al
  • L. Fuchs, Neu Kreuterbuch, in welchem nit al
  • L. Fuchs, Neu Kreuterbuch, in welchem nit al
  • L. Fuchs, Neu Kreuterbuch, in welchem nit al
  • L. Fuchs, Neu Kreuterbuch, in welchem nit al
  • L. Fuchs, Neu Kreuterbuch, in welchem nit al
  • L. Fuchs, Neu Kreuterbuch, in welchem nit al
  • L. Fuchs, Neu Kreuterbuch, in welchem nit al
  • L. Fuchs, Neu Kreuterbuch, in welchem nit al
  • L. Fuchs, Neu Kreuterbuch, in welchem nit al
  • L. Fuchs, Neu Kreuterbuch, in welchem nit al
  • Men of various sizes are sitting on chairs watching a very tall man (Moissan?). Lithograph by L. Fuchs.
  • Men of various sizes are sitting on chairs watching a very tall man (Moissan?). Lithograph by L. Fuchs.
  • FUCHS: Commentaires tres excellens de l'hyst
  • FUCHS: Commentaires tres excellens de l'hyst
  • FUCHS: Commentaires tres excellens de l'hyst
  • FUCHS: Commentaires tres excellens de l'hyst
  • FUCHS: Commentaires tres excellens de l'hyst
  • FUCHS: Commentaires tres excellens de l'hyst
  • Primula veris L. Primulaceae. Cowslip, Herba paralysis Distribution: W. Asia, Europe. Fuchs ((1542) quotes Dioscorides Pliny and Galen, with numerous uses, from bruises, toothache, as a hair dye, for oedema, inflamed eye, and mixed with honey, wine or vinegar for ulcer and wounds, for scorpion bites, and pain in the sides and chest, and more. Lobel (1576) calls them Primula veriflorae, Phlomides, Primula veris, Verbascula. Like other herbals of the 16th and 17th century, the woodcuts leave one in no doubt that Primula veris was being written about. However, other translators of Dioscorides (Gunther, 1959 with Goodyear's 1655 translation
  • Reseda lutea L. Resedaceae Wild Mignonette. Dyers Rocket. Herbaceous plant. Distribution: Eurasia and North Africa. This plant, and in particular R. luteola, is the source of 'weld' a yellow dye from luteolin a flavonoid in the sap. It is said to have been used since the first millennium BC, but curiously Dioscorides, Lyte, Gerard, Lobel, Fuchs, Coles, Quincy, Linnaeus (1782) either do not mention it or make it synonymous with Eruca, Rocket, and make no reference to it as a dye source. The name Resedo means 'I sit up' in Latin, which Stearn (1994) interprets as 'I heal' which makes its absence even more strange. It is noted as the dye source by Bentley (1861). Photographed in the Medicinal Garden of the Royal College of Physicians, London.
  • Primula veris L. Primulaceae Cowslip, Herba paralysis Distribution: W. Asia, Europe. Fuchs ((1542) quotes Dioscorides Pliny and Galen, with numerous uses, from bruises, toothache, as a hair dye, for oedema, inflamed eye, and mixed with honey, wine or vinegar for ulcer and wounds, for scorpion bites, and pain in the sides and chest, and more. Lobel (1576) calls them Primula veriflorae, Phlomides, Primula veris, Verbascula. Lyte (1578) calls them Cowslippe, Petie mulleyn, Verbasculum odoratum, Primula veris, Herbae paralysis and Artheticae. Along with cowslips and oxeslips, he says they are 'used dayly among other pot herbes, but in Physicke there is no great account of them. They are good for the head and synewes ...'. Like other herbals of the 16th and 17th century, the woodcuts leave one in no doubt that Primula veris was being written about. However, other translators of Dioscorides (Gunther, 1959 with Goodyear's 1655 translation
  • Three cultivars of fuchsia (Fuchsia species): flowering stems. Chromolithograph by L. Stroobant, c. 1860, after himself.
  • Fuchsia magellanica Lam. Onagraceae. Hardy fuchsia. Semi-hardy shrub. Distribution: Mountainous regions of Chile and Argentina where they are called 'Chilco' by the indigenous people, the Mapuche. The genus was discovered by Charles Plumier in Hispaniola in 1696/7, and named by him for Leonhart Fuchs (1501-1566), German Professor of Medicine, whose illustrated herbal, De Historia Stirpium (1542) attempted the identification of the plants in the Classical herbals. It also contained the first accounts of maize, Zea mays, and chilli peppers, Capsicum annuum, then recently introduced from Latin America. He was also the first person to publish an account and woodcuts of foxgloves, Digitalis purpurea and D. lutea. The book contains 500 descriptions and woodcuts of medicinal plants, arranged in alphabetical order, and relied heavily on the De Materia Medica (c. AD 70) of Dioscorides. He was a powerful influence on the herbals of Dodoens, and thence to Gerard, L’Escluse and Henry Lyte. A small quarto edition appeared in 1551, and a two volume facsimile of the 1542 edition with commentary and selected translations from the Latin was published by Stanford Press in 1999. The original woodcuts were passed from printer to printer and continued in use for 232 years (Schinz, 1774). Photographed in the Medicinal Garden of the Royal College of Physicians, London.
  • Australian fuchsia (Correa sp.): flowering stem with floral segments. Engraving by C. Dien and J. L. Perée, c.1798, after P. J. Redouté.
  • Australian fuchsia (Correa alba Andrews): flowering stem with floral segments. Engraving by C. Dien and J. L. Perée, c.1798, after P. J. Redouté.
  • Paris quadrifolia L. Trilliaceae Herb Paris Distribution: Europe and temperate Asia. This dramatic plant was known as Herb Paris or one-berry. Because of the shape of the four leaves, resembling a Burgundian cross or a true love-knot, it was also known as Herb True Love. Prosaically, the name ‘Paris’ stems from the Latin ‘pars’ meaning ‘parts’ referring to the four equal leaves, and not to the French capital or the lover of Helen of Troy. Sixteenth century herbalists such as Fuchs, who calls it Aconitum pardalianches which means leopard’s bane, and Lobel who calls it Solanum tetraphyllum, attributed the poisonous properties of Aconitum to it. The latter, called monkshood and wolfsbane, are well known as poisonous garden plants. Gerard (1633), however, reports that Lobel fed it to animals and it did them no harm, and caused the recovery of a dog poisoned deliberately with arsenic and mercury, while another dog, which did not receive Herb Paris, died. It was recommended thereafter as an antidote to poisons. Coles (1657) wrote 'Herb Paris is exceedingly cold, wherupon it is proved to represse the rage and force of any Poyson, Humour , or Inflammation.' Because of its 'cold' property it was good for swellings of 'the Privy parts' (where presumably hot passions were thought to lie), to heal ulcers, cure poisoning, plague, procure sleep (the berries) and cure colic. Through the concept of the Doctrine of Signatures, the black berry represented an eye, so oil distilled from it was known as Anima oculorum, the soul of the eye, and 'effectual for all the disease of the eye'. Linnaeus (1782) listed it as treating 'Convulsions, Mania, Bubones, Pleurisy, Opththalmia', but modern authors report the berry to be toxic. That one poison acted as an antidote to another was a common, if incorrect, belief in the days of herbal medicine. Photographed in the Medicinal Garden of the Royal College of Physicians, London.
  • Valeriana officinalis L. Valerianaceae Valerianus, Phu, Nardus sylvestris, Setwal. Distribution: Europe. Popular herbalism attributes sedation to Valerian, but this is not mentioned by Coles (1657) or Gerard (1633) or Lobel (1576) or Lyte (1578) or Dioscorides (ex Gunther, 1959) or Fuchs (1553), where he quotes Pliny, Dioscorides and Galen, or Parkinson (1640), or Pomet (1712). The English translation of Tournefort (1719-1730) covers a whole page of the uses of all the different valerians, but never mentions sedation or treating anxiety. Quincy (1718) does not mention it. Because it was used in epilepsy, for which Woodville (1792) says it was useless, Haller, in his Historia stirpium indegenarum Helvetae inchoatae (1768) advocates it for those with irritability of the nervous system, as does Thomson's London Dispensatory (1811) although he lists it as an 'antispasmodic and stimulant' and for inducing menstruation. Lindley (1838) notes (as many did) that the roots smell terrible and that this makes cats excited, and in man, in large doses, induce 'scintillations, agitation and even convulsions' so used in asthenic fever, epilepsy, chorea, hysteria and as an antihelminthic.' Fluckiger & Hanbury (1879) give a wonderful account of the history of its names, but give its use as 'stimulant and antispasmodic' as do Barton & Castle (1877). but by 1936 (Martindale's Extra Pharmacopoeia) its only use was 'Given in hysterical and neurotic conditions as a sedative. Its action has been attributed to its unpleasant smell'. The European Medicines Agency (2006) approves its use as a traditional herbal medicine for mild anxiety and sleeplessness for up to 4 weeks. Despite what is written continuously about its use in ancient Greece and Rome, the only reason for its use has been because it was thought, for a brief while, to be good for epilepsy and therefore might deal with persons of a nervous disposition because of its foul smell. It has been suggested that even its Greek name, 'Phu' came from the expression of disgust which is made when one sniffs an unpleasant odour. For 1,800 years, before the last century, no-one had thought it sedative. Photographed in the Medicinal Garden of the Royal College of Physicians, London.
  • Asphodeline lutea Rchb. Yellow asphodel, King's spear, Hastula regia. Hardy rhizomatous perennial. Distribution Mediterranean and Caucasus. It is the flower of the dead, as Homer writes that it carpets an area in the gloomy darkness of the underworld (Hades), in Greek mythology where the souls of the dead are found. However this may be a misinterpretation of the Greek where 'Asphodel' has been read instead of 'ash-filled'. In the etymology of flower names, it is suggested that the yellow 'daffodil' is a corruption of French or Flemish 'de asphodel' (both ex Steve Reece, 2007). An Aristotelian epigram, refers to it growing on tombs: 'On my back I hold mallow and many-rooted asphodel ...' The asphodel was sacred to Persephone, goddess of the underworld, who was seized and wed by Hades, god of the underworld, and taken to his kingdom. Her disappearance brings the winter, and her reappearance each year, the spring. The only reliable source of information about its early medical uses is, probably, Dioscorides although the plant in his De Materia Medica may be A. ramosus or A. albus. He gives its properties as diuretic, induces menses, good for coughs and convulsions, an antidote to snake bite, applied as a poultice for sores of all sorts, and in compounds for eye, ear and tooth pains, and to cure alopecia and vitiligo, but induces diarrhoea and vomiting and is an anti-aphrodisiac. Fuchs (1542), as Ruel’s commentaries (1543) note, makes a big mistake as he has Lilium martagon as his concept of A. luteus. Ruel only illustrates its leaves and roots, calling it Hastula regia (Latin for King’s spear) but Matthiolus's Commentaries (1569 edition) has a reasonable woodcut also as Hastula regia (1569). Dodoen's Cruydeboeck (1556) does not mention or illustrate Asphodelus luteus. L'Escluse's French translation Histoire des Plantes (1557) follows the Cruydeboeck. Dodoen's Latin translation Stirpium Historia Pemptades Sex (1583) adds A. luteus with text and woodcut, with no uses. Henry Lyte's (1578) translation illustrates Asphodelus luteus as Asphodeli tertia species and 'Yellow affodyl' (vide etymology of 'daffodil') and also does not describe any uses for it. Gerard's translation The Herbal (1597 and 1633) continues the muddle and does not give any uses for this plant. Parkinson's comments (1640) on the lack of medicinal properties of asphodels, refer to quite different plants coming from wet areas in Lancashire, Scotland and Norway . He calls them pseudoasphodelus major and minor which he writes are called Asphodelus luteus palustris by Dodoens, and not 'King's Spear' which he illustrates with a good woodcut of A. luteus and calls it Asphodelus luteus minor. Once herbals started to be written in northern Europe, the knowledge of the arid loving, Asphodelus luteus of south east Europe was lost. Photographed in the Medicinal Garden of the Royal College of Physicians, London.