Tag: herbalism
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American ginseng as an herbal emissary influencing Qing-American trade relations
Richard ZhangPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania, United States On February 22, 1784, the Empress of China set sail from New York Harbor.1 Destined for the eponymous country, the American ship carried thirty tons of a wild root—ginseng. The vessel reached Guangzhou via the Cape of Good Hope and returned to New York one year later, laden with Chinese…
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Frankincense and myrrh: Medicinal resin worth more than gold
Mariel TishmaChicago, Illinois, United States Boswellia and Commiphora trees are scraggly, sharp, and unfriendly. Growing close to the ground in the arid desert, they have short trunks and fanning branches, sometimes looking more like shrubs than trees. But despite their unlikely appearance, they once served as the cornerstone of an ancient trade.1 When cut or…
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More than “toil and trouble”: Macbeth and medicine
Mariel TishmaChicago, Illinois, United States The image of a woman – a witch — working over a bubbling cauldron filled with stomach-turning substances is a staple of both horror and more family friendly media. One such example is Shakespeare’s Macbeth, specifically the “Double, double toil and trouble” speech given by the three witches in Act…