Bencao yuanshi (Origins of Materia Medica), by Li Zhongli, was first published in 1612. This is the first page of the first volume (juan), in the revised edition of Ge Ding, engraved in 1638.
The book, in 12 juan (volumes or fascicles), contains entries on 452 medicinal substances and 379 illustrations. Each entry includes a brief account of the geographic provenance of the substance, its sapor and thermostatic character, and its applications, followed by corrections and recipes. Most of the illustrations are of drugs available on the Chinese market at that time. Captions alongside the illustrations provide information on distinguishing features, times and seasons when the drug can be collected or gathered, etc. This work is of great importance for the history of Chinese pharmaceutics. Juan 1, 'Section on grasses and herbs, Former part' lists 51 species, beginning with huangjing (Rhizoma Polygonati).
