Yaohui tukao (Illustrated Congregation of Drugs), published in 1935 (24th year of the Republic of China), presents the materia medica in dramatic form. It consists of ten scenes, in which various drugs appear as protagonists.
This illustration accompanies Scene 6, Gan fu touqin (Taking Refuge in the Mansion of Sweetness), in which characters personifying muxiang (Banksia rose), dendrobium (shihu), and white chrysanthemum/feverfew (bai juhua) present the sapors, potencies, and therapeutic uses of various drugs through the medium of spoken dialogue and song.
Asparagus root (tianmendong) clears and purges fire in the lung, lowers fever and gets rid of [bone] steaming. Lotus seed pulp removes the effects of drunkenness from the spleen and clears the lungs. Spikenard (gansong, nardostachys) tea dispels melancholy and harmonises the centre. Green bugbane rhizome (lü shengma, rhizoma cimicifugae) can disperse wind-cold (fenghan). Mint leaf can bring clarity to the head and eyes. Rhinoceros horn can dispel heat in the heart. The rind of white mulberry root can purge fire in the lungs… Altogether, this scene introduces some 20 drugs.
