Medicinal plants in folk tradition : an ethnobotany of Britain & [and] Ireland

Assembled by two of the most distinguished botanical and ethnological scholars in Britain, this book chronicles the medicinal uses of more than 400 species used by the plain folk of Britain and Ireland. The history of these plantsвЂTM usages has been mined from rich firsthand accounts captured by surveys, from more than 1000 manuscript volumes of the Irish Folklore Commission, and from close to 300 other published and unpublished sources. The book includes chosen illustrations from herbals such as those by Bock, Fuchs, and Brunfels, and a selection of color photographs by Deni Bown. This book provides the first comprehensive account of medicinal uses of wild plants by the country folk of Britain and Ireland. Two of Britain's foremost ethnobotanical scholars mined nearly 300 published and unpublished sources, including information gathered by the Irish Folklore Commission in more than 1000 manuscript volumes, to chronicle the fascinating uses of more than 400 plant species. This mass of unwritten herbal lore constitutes a medical tradition in its own right, yet one overlooked by historians.Among the many kinds of plants recorded here are a seaweed used in Scotland against 'all maladies except the Black Death', a mushroom stewed in milk in Norfolk to soothe cancer of the throat, a fern identified in Ireland as a 'herb of the seven gifts' for its reputed ability to cure diseases, and the remarkable range of benefits attributed to nettles. Such information, in addition to being interesting in and of itself, offers a starting point for phytochemical and pharmacological investigations of plants whose utility may have been overlooked.An appendix of veterinary uses is provided. Illustrations include 57 carefully chosen drawings, and 31 colour photographs by Deni Bown. Medicinal Plants in Folk Tradition: An Ethnobotany of Britain & Ireland will be valuable to anthropologists, archaeologists, botanists, geographers and historians as well as anyone with an interest in natural healing. "This book provides the first comprehensive account of medicinal uses of wild plants by the country folk of Britain and Ireland. Two of Britain's foremost ethnobotanical scholars mined nearly 300 published and unpublished sources, including information gathered by the Irish Folklore Commission in more than 1000 manuscript volumes, to chronicle the fascinating uses of more than 400 plant species. This mass of unwritten herbal lore constitutes a medical tradition in its own right, yet one overlooked by historians." "An appendix of veterinary uses is provided. Illustrations include 57 carefully chosen drawings, and 31 colour photographs by Deni Bown." "Medicinal Plants in Folk Tradition: An Ethnobotany of Britain & Ireland will be valuable to anthropologists, archaeologists, botanists, geographers and historians as well as anyone with an interest in natural healing."--Jacket
Assembled by two of the most distinguished botanical and ethnological scholars in Britain, this book chronicles the medicinal uses of more than 400 species used by the plain folk of Britain and Ireland. The history of these plants' usages has been mined from rich firsthand accounts captured by surveys, from more than 1000 manuscript volumes of the Irish Folklore Commission, and from close to 300 other published and unpublished sources. The book includes chosen illustrations from herbals such as those by Bock, Fuchs, and Brunfels, and a selection of color photographs by Deni Bown.