Page 11 - Pharmacy History 34 February 2008

One could not simply go out and safely uproot your own mandrake plant, as the mandrake would give
off an ear-piercing scream as pulled from the earth, and anyone in earshot could be killed by this terrifying scream. The appropriate three magic circles were drawn around the plant and a connecting rope tied to a dog. Then an inducement of a piece of meat was put just outside the range of the dog, which hopefully would leap for the meat and uproot the mandrake. The downside was you had a dead dog?
Many myths existed as to the varying powers of the root, and the most potent root sprouted where the blood or semen of a true criminal had fertilized the earth. The vendor’s of the roots could certainly weave fanciful tales to extract maximum value from the buyer, who parted with large sums of money to buy the benefit of the miracles and protection they would enjoy. Mandrake was heavily associated with the practice of witchcraft, however by the 1500s
The appropriate three magic circles were drawn around the plant and a connecting rope tied to a dog.
herbalists tried to dispel the myths surrounding the plant, but the belief in its mystical powers persisted into the early 1800s. In some rural areas people talked about ‘the mandrake must be working’ when someone fell upon good luck.
Having a mandrake root was not a passive ownership, but a personal relationship that required constant positive input. It had to be bathed in milk or wine, fed specific food, and wrapped in the finest silk.
Today, there is very little use of the Mandrake plant, even in herbalism the leaves are harmless and cooling, and have been used for ointments and other external applications for ulcers (formerly the juice from the finely grated root was externally applied to relieve rheumatic pains, ulcers and scrofulous tumors). According to the Extra Pharmocopaeia, Martindale 24th edition, mandrake was also known as podophyllum and the rhizome had various uses as a purgative and for removing warts.
I still haven’t fully satisfied myself as to what the contents of my pharmacy tin would have been used for in times gone by. With so much confusion over the name ‘mandrake’, we probably will never know its full story and it will always remain one of the few enigmatic items that I have in my pharmacy museum, but it’s a great conversation piece!
Another book for your library
Our Kiwi correspondent Don Millar has co-authored a book with Des Harris entitled Napier’s Medicine Makers.
This book of 241 pages traces the history of Napier pharmacists from 1860 to the mid 1950s.
It is an excellent example of how a history can be researched and presented in a readable and
interesting style with multiple photos and illustrations of labels, shop fronts and artefacts all relating to
pharmacies in the Hawkes Bay region of the North Islan of New Zealand.
This is a book that will not only be of interest to those expatriate pharmacists now living in Australia, but it also brings to life the stories of a number of Australian practitioners with links across the Tasman.
The book is available direct from the author Don Millar, 21 Upham Crescent, Taradale, Napier, New Zealand for around $80 AUD, including postage.
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volume 4 no 35 September 2008
Pharmacy History Australia 11