Illustration of xingren (apricot kernels/almonds) from Shiwu bencao (Materia dietetica), a dietetic herbal in four volumes dating from the Ming period (1368-1644). The identity of the author and artists is unknown. It contains entries on over 300 medicinal substances and is illustrated by almost 500 paintings in colour.
The illustration shows a young man cracking almonds with a small hammer.
The text states: Almonds (or apricot kernels) are sweet and bitter in sapor, and slightly poisonous. They have the medicinal properties of bringing down Qi, moistening the heart and lungs, dispersing wind-cold (fenghan) and relieving coughing, relieving acute pain in the heart and lungs, dispersing agglomerations and moistening dryness, and removing intestinal blockages. Almonds with double kernels must not eaten; half-raw, half-cooked almonds must not be eaten, as they are poisonous. There is an alimentary prohibition on eating almonds together with millet.
