Abandon Project (a brief adventure with tarragon)

When I started the research on tarragon (artemisia dracunculus) I had no idea what awaited me.  While it has been referred to in historical texts, there is little reference to its medicinal uses, only its usage in regional cooking, whihc is not my main focus.  I am not one to let good research to go to waste, so here is what I found.

the names, and thus the origin, of this herb was the first hurdle.  Artemisia is a large family (including plants such as wormwood) and tarragon is often confused with mugwort (artemisia vulgaria), and there are two varieties of it: French (artemisia dracunculus ) and Russian (artemisia dracunculoides).  The commonly accepted theory of the origin of tarragon's name is as follows "The name Tarragon is a corruption of the French Esdragon, derived from the Latin Dracunculus (a little dragon), which also serves as its specific name. It was sometimes called little Dragon Mugwort and in French has also the name Herbe au Dragon."(http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/t/tarrag07.html).  This gives a good reason why there was the belief that tarragon would heal bites from mad dogs and venomous creatures.

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The original spark for this research was a medieval Spanish recipe from (http://www.medievalspanishchef.com/).  While food recipes can aid in determining a time and place for herbs, this did me little to no good.  Another medieval Spanish recipe book (written in Catalan) mentioned  that it came to Europe in the 16th century but that there is little mention of it in historical texts (Cuina medieval catalana: història, dietètica i cuina by Eliana Thibaut i Comalada).  So there was not a lot of headway on the food front, ok, moving on to herbal sources.   

Nothing in De Materia Medica...odd...but ok.

Botanical.com has an entry, perfect, all is not lost.  Used to cool the heat of other herbs in salads...not really what I was looking for.

No mention of it in Culpeper or Bingen...alright, I can take a hint.

Onto the Medieval Herbalism board on FaceBook.

Gerard's Herbal, sweet a new resource!  Interesting origin story "the seed of flax put into a radish or a sea onion [squill] and set int the ground will bring forth this herb", but otherwise the same information I already had.

So due to the lack of information on tarragon, I have no choice but to abandon the project.  I got a list of new resources to add to my collection, so not all is lost.

Sources

Cuina medieval catalana: història, dietètica i cuina by Eliana Thibaut i Comalada  

The Magic Teaspoon by Victoria Zak

The Meaning of Herbs: Myth, Language and Lore by Gretchen Scoble and Ann Field

Plant Names from the Leechbook of Bald  http://wyrtig.com/EarlyPlants/LeechbookPlants.htm

The herball, or, Generall historie of plantes https://archive.org/stream/herballorgeneral00gera?hc_location=ufi#page/248/mode/2up

New path?

To be honest, I have been struggling with which direction to take my herbalism studies for, well, ever.  The subject covers all time periods, areas and peoples, thus making it hard to find a niche.  I recently received some fantastic advice, focus on what makes me excited about herbalism.  At first, I had no idea what this was.  Now, having had some time to think about it, I think I know where I will try next.  I love the folk knowledge of herbs, the old wives tales, the societal memory, the "we've done this forever and we don't know why, but it works".  I am hoping that this will enable me to more easily focus on a place and period.

Wish me luck!

Preparing for Spring: Just a cup of tea? (Lionsdale Winter Tourney 2015)

Spring is often considered to be the season of growth and new life. This would also be the view held by my persona in the northern coastal city of Coruña in the northwestern state of Galicia, Spain. The climate of this area is considered temperate, making it ideal for the cultivation and natural growing of mint (Mentha). As the plant shrivels in the winter, any remedies throughout the season would need to be made with dried mint. As my persona would prepare for the new mint plants spring would bring, she would seek to make room in her stores by using the last of her preserved herb. One of the best ways to use this herb was to make a decoction, a strong tea, but is there more than meets the eye with this simple preparation?

The process of making a decoction consists of bringing fresh water to a boil then adding herbs, either fresh or dried to it. Simmering the herbs and water for 10 to 15 minutes and then straining the herbs from the water. This preparation is stronger then merely steeping the herbs in boiling water, thus making an infusion. Throughout my studies, I have yet to find an herb that could not be used a decoction. I have made decoctions of lavender (for respiratory issues), dill, fennel and horehound (for a cold/cough remedy).

Such an decoction was used to assist in the treatment of: a bleeding nose, fortifying the stomach, curing the hiccoughs, enhancing sexual desires, combating bad breath, and skin eruptions (especially on the head) inducing menstruation or causing a miscarriage. It could rouse one who had fainted and when taken with honey, according to Culpeper, could ease pains of the ear and roughness of the tongue¹. Hildegard of Bingen suggests “[eating] watermint [bachmyntza], either raw or cooked with meats, or in a broth, or can be cooked as a puree”² when the stomach was stuffed. Mint, or its decoction, could also be added to pomegranate wine for the same result. Adding the mint to milk, it is unclear if it was boiled within it or not, would stop a bleeding nose from coagulating³. This use could have been used if the patient was being bled to equalize the humours.

The Mint family, Lamiaceae, is extensive and is used to identify a large variety of plants, not limited to: basil, savory, lavender, sage and rosemary. Its earliest documentation comes from Pliny⁴. It was well-known throughout the medieval era, as it had been carried throughout the Roman Empire. When searching for the medicinal uses of mint, the specific kind is not always identified, it is merely called “mint”. Hildegard of Bingen clearly mentioned curled, field and water mints, but the majority of other herbal writers make no distinction between the various species. In my stores, I had peppermint (Mentha piperita) specifically, which for the duration of this presentation will take the place of unspecified mint.

In order to understand how mint worked, it becomes necessary to look at the beliefs held by those of the era. Middle Ages beliefs about the body, its ailments and how to cure them were centered around the four humours: black bile, yellow bile, blood and phlegm. Balance of these within the body meant good health, while an imbalance lead to sickness. The hot/cold/dry/wet qualities of the humours gave healers clues how to best return the body's equilibrium. Galen, a Greek in the early part of the first century, further defined the aspects of plants and gave them degrees; one being the weakest and four being the strongest. Mint is said to be both hot and dry in the second degree, which means that it is of middling potency.

'Hot' herbs were generally used to stave off chills and stimulate metabolism. Many of the herbs that fall into this category are strong in both aroma and taste. 'Dry' herbs were best used to purge the body of moisture, such as phlegm. All of the cures were determined by opposites. If you had an ailment that was cold and wet, an example being an upset or cold stomach, mint with its hot and dry properties would encourage the production of yellow bile to correct an excess of black bile. An overabundance of black bile was thought to because of sadness, melancholia.

1 Nicholas Culpeper. Culpeper's Medicine: A Practice of Western Holistic Medicine.Page 244.

2 Dr. Wighard Strehlow and Gottfried Hertzka. M.D. Hildegard of Bingen's Medicine.Page 107.

3 Ibn Buṭlān. The four seasons of the House of Cerruti.

4 Lev Efrayim and Zohar 'Amar. Practical Materia Medica of the Medieval Eastern Mediterranean According to the Cairo Genizah. Page 449.

Works Cited

Buṭlān, Ibn. The four seasons of the House of Cerruti.

Cosman, Madeleine Pelner and Linda Gale Jones. Handbook to Life in the Medieval World. Infobase Publishing, 2008.

Culpeper, Nicholas. Culpeper's Medicine: A Practice of Western Holistic Medicine.

Daisley, Gilda. Herbs International & Illustrated. Chevprime Ltd, 1989.

Discorides. De Materia Medica.

Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal http://www.botanical.com (Last accessed November 10, 2014)

Lev, Efrayim and Zohar 'Amar. Practical Materia Medica of the Medieval Eastern Mediterranean According to the Cairo Genizah. Brill, 2008.

Pazzini, Adalberto and Emma Pirani. Herbarium: Natural Remedies from a Medieval Manuscript. New York: Rizooli, 1980.

Van Arsdall, Anne. Medieval Herbal Remedies: The Old English Herbarium and Anglo-Saxon Medicine. Routledge: New York, 2002.

The Good Wife's Guide (Le Ménagier de Paris): A Medieval Household Book. Cornell University Press, 2012

Strehlow, Dr. Wighard and Gottfried Hertzka. M.D. Hildegard of Bingen's Medicine. Santa Fe: Bear and Company Inc., 1998. 

http://www.greekmedicine.net/Principles_of_Treatment/Herbal_Therapeutics_and_Materia_Medica.html

Horehound Tonic Process

The wine

(It was recommended that red wine would be the most period)

The dry herbs 

Herbs in the wine on the stove

Linen cloth ready to strain

Straining the herbs through the linen cloth so just the wine is left.

The strained herbs

I had trouble getting a good picture of the tonic, the colour of the wine appeared only a little darker.

The flavour is of the tonic is dominated by the horehound, the other two herbs are barely detectable.

Horehound Tonic

"Those who cough should take fennel and dill in equal parts,add one third of a part of horehound and boil the herbs in wine, strain through a linen cloth,drink and the cough will disappear."

Hildegard of Bingen's Medicine by Dr. Wighard Strehlow and Gottfried Hertza, M.D.

Medieval Medicine

Medieval beliefs about the body, its ailments and how to cure them were centered around the four

humours: black bile, yellow bile, blood and phlegm. Balance of these within the body meant good 

health,while an imbalance lead to sickness. The hot or cold, dry or wet qualities of the humours gave 

healers clues how to best return the body's equilibrium. Galen, a Greek in the early part of the first 

century, further defined the aspects of plants and gave them degrees; one being the weakest and four 

being the  strongest.

'Hot' herbs were generally used to stave off chills and stimulate metabolism. Many of the herbs that fall into this category are strong in both aroma and taste. 'Dry' herbs were best used to purge the body of moisture, such as phelgm. All of the cures were determined by opposites. If you had an ailment that was cold and wet, an example being a bronchial cough, this tonic with its hot and dry properties would be ideal in easing the patients suffering and place on the road to well-being.

Hildegard of Bingen

A German Abbess in the 12^th century, who wrote about many herbs, treatments and beliefs about the human body. She is the only female herbalist currently known.

White Horehound (Marrubium vulgare)

Part used: Leaves

Qualities: hot 2 dry 3

Historical Tidbits: Indigenous to Britain.

Esteemed by the Romans and refered to as "seed of Horus", "Bull's Blood" and "Eye of the Star" by the ancient Egyptians.

Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare)

Part used: Seeds

Qualities: hot 2 dry 2

Historical Tidbits: Indigenous to the Mediterranean.

Cultivated by the Romans.

Mentioned in pre-Norman conquest Anglo-Saxon cookery and Spanish agriculture records from AD 961.

Dill (Anethum graveleons)

Part used: Leaves

Qualities: hot 2 dry 1

Historical Tidbits: Indigenous to the Mediterranean and southern Russia.

Called the "Anethon of Dioscorides" and known by Pliny and Middle Age writers.

Found in Norse burial sites.

Why is called "Horehound Tonic"?

While there is no documentable reason for this name, I feel that it is named for horehound, rather than fennel or dill, as it is the most potent of the herbs used. When drunk, all one can taste is the horehound.

Why wine?

Wine is believed to have its own restorative properties and is well known for its ability to absorb the medicinal properties of herbs placed within it.

Works Used

http://www.greekmedicine.net/Principles_of_Treatment/Herbal_Therapeutics_and_Materia_Medica.html (Last accessed November 10, 2014)

Culpeper, Nicholas. Culpeper's Complete Herbal: Over 400 herbs and their uses. London: Arcturus, 2009.

Daisley, Gilda. Herbs International & Illustrated. Chevprime Ltd, 1989.

Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal http://www.botanical.com (Last accessed November 10, 2014)

Pazzini, Adalberto and Emma Pirani. Herbarium: Natural Remedies from a Medieval Manuscript. New York: Rizooli, 1980.

Tobyn, Graeme. Culpeper's Medicine: A Practice of Western Holistic Medicine. Shaftesbury: Element, 1997.

Simplified Herbal Preparations

Infusion: boiling water is poured over the desired herb and steeped, then the herb is removed.

Decoction: herbs are simmered for 10 to 20 minutes in water, making the result stronger than an infusion.

Maceration: an infusion made with cold, rather than hot, water.

Washes: any infusion, maceration or decoction that can be used to clean an area.

Syrups: infusions or decoctions that are mixed with honey or sugar, as a form of preservation.

Tonic Wines: placing herbs in, usually, red wine, for 2 or so weeks. Herbs need to be replaced after 2 months.

Tinctures: Herbs are soaked in alcohol (vodka, gin or white rum), or glycerin, for about 2 weeks. Best stored in dark coloured bottles. This can keep for years.

Ointments: infusions made with oil

Oils: can be done by hot or cold infusion Cold infusion covers the herb in oil and places it in the sun.

Compress: a cloth soaked in an infusion, decoction or maceration that can be applied hot or cold to the skin.

Poultice: whole herbs are placed upon the skin.

Dilly of an herb

 Embarking on a new research project is always interesting.  Choosing an herb, period or concoction is tough.  The use and study of herbs has been around since, well forever.  Many of the herbs that we consider common nowadays were not so way back when.  The herbs that were readily available to my persona, 15th/16th century northwestern Spanish has become my focus.  Lavender was my first herb spotlight and I enjoyed it so much and got such a good response from it, that I am going to see if I can do even better with dill.  At the moment, this is not for a specific event or competition, I am hoping that it will develop, please excuse the pun, organically.

More to follow.