Wormwood
Entry posted by Pertinax
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The herb from which Absinthe is made .As a medicine it is excellent,strongly anthelmintic ( worm killer) and choleretic (bile stimulant) amongst other virtues. Thujone though (a volatile oil from the plant ) is a nasty hallucogen and is addictive-hence the problems suffered in 19th Century France.If the thujone is removed though the virtues of the medicine remain. I understand that ,like quassia , the wood was used for bowls and drinking vessels thereby flavouring and influencing whatever was consumed ( and keeping the drinker tapeworm free).I have an old print image in the Gallery now, but will search for a fresh plant in spring. Dont try making Absinthe at home as the Thujone will make you feel :bag: "agoraphobic"-you will have a fear of the market/meeting place
Southerwood is the actual Italian/Spanish herb (A abrotanum) , Dioscorides said if taken in wine this would repel venomous creatures and insects- he was certainly right as regards a lot of insect pests.
The germans used it as a wound dressing. Mugwort (A vulgaris ) is a common British herb formerly used for menstrual problems but currently unfashionable.
Thujone appears to affect the same nerve receptors that tetrahydrocannabinols (dope as the Fabulous Furry Freak brotherrs would say) hit, so in a person with a predisposition to "melancholia" this could trigger depressive or paranoid behavioural traits. I suggest that it is the variation in quantity of thujone that causes the problem-a plant can have nearly 35% thujone content as a volatile oil-so if you get a full strength dose from a fresh plant it could knock your socks off, the dried herb would be far less of a problem and as Pantagathus rightly notes, a lot of alcohol is needed to macerate the plant ,so you have quite a cocktail.
The plant contains azulenes,sesquiterpine lactones, acetylenes (in the root-and they can cause problems as well),Phenolic acids and Lignans.In a dethujoned fluid extract you would use maybe 6ml per day for an adult male-mixed with walnut hull and golden seal ,to kill any unwanted intestinal visitor stone dead in short order.
Culpepper quotes Dioscorides in his suggestion that "Southerwood mixed with old salad oil will restore hair loss" 
Ill bet Pliny has something to say about that.
note:I was intrigued by Pantagathus' remark about Van Gogh eating his paints-dont do it!
Cadmium-carcinogen,Cobalt-arsenous elements,White-lead, and I see that Turpentine was used to administer drugs intravenously 
Oh yes and blue-prussic acid, very poisinous.More Brassica needed.
If however you are considering a pre-combat woad body paint and malachite hair dye please try this useful link-but remember dont grow this stuff unless you are prepared to dig it up, it grows like crazy.Interestingly woad is also a good external salve for wounds( too toxic for internal use-most blue things are)so we have ritual display and pre-combat wound salve in one.
http://my.net-link.net/~rowan/crafts/woad/...hat%20Is%20Woad
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