top of page
Dry Roses and Diary

Discovering the Apothecary

Apothecary shop counter
Apothecary shops doubled as grocery stores

Apothecary is an old fashioned English term for a medical professional who formulated and dispensed medicine to physicians, surgeons and patients. In today's society the terms 'pharmacist' and 'chemist' are used.


Apothecaries' investigation of herbal and chemical ingredients was a precursor to the modern sciences of chemistry and pharmacology.


Apothecary shops often doubled as grocery stores too, and they sold ingredients to members of the public. The medicines they prepared wholesale and sold them to other medical practitioners, as well as dispensing them to patients.


Vintage cash register


Apothecaries were a branch of the tripartite medical system of apothecary-surgeon-physician which arose in Europe in the early-modern period. They were well established as a profession by the seventeenth century. Their daily livelihoods were defined by a focus on retail (sales to the public without performing other clinical roles). Their shops were designed to attract the customer, and they stored their wares in elaborately decorated jars which looked beautiful in store. Skill in chemistry was an important part of the apothecary's identity, and these jars- which contained the ingredients used to manufacture medicines- leant prestige to their craft.



The apothecary jars bear Latin labels to describe their medicinal contents. Pharmacists and chemists would have learnt about these medicines during their training, and used handbooks about drugs and their therapeutic properties to keep themselves up to speed in their daily practice.





The collection of apothecary jars showing on the online Emporium include the following, with interesting uses:


Buchu conc (concentrate)

Buchu is a plant from South Africa. The leaf is used to make medicine.

Buchu is used for urinary tract infections, including infections involving the urethra and kidneys. It is also used by mouth for treating inflamed prostate, high blood pressure, fever, cough, common cold, upset stomach, stomach ulcers, irritable bowel syndrome, gout, and sexually transmitted diseases.


Apothecary jars


Pulv: glycyr dec:

Pulvis Glycyrrhiza C. Powder of Liquorice Calyx

The Liquorice plant has a perennial root, flower spikes, herbaceous stems, and a calyx that is tubular and persistent. G. glabra is native to southern Europe, Syria, and Persia. A species, G. lepidota is native to Missouri. Widely used as a laxative.



Magnes Carb pond

Carbonate Of Magnesia, Mag Carb, Mag c, Mag. Carb, Magnesium carbonicum, Mag-c.

This medication is a mineral supplement used to prevent and treat low amounts of magnesium in the blood. Some brands are also used to treat symptoms of too much stomach acid such as stomach upset, heartburn, and acid indigestion. Magnesium is very important for the normal functioning of cells, nerves, muscles, bones, and the heart.


Aurant: co: conc:

aurant., aurantior., aurantium -i = orange, Citrus aurantium; cortex aurantiorum, orange peel.


Aqua Aurant

Liquid form aurant


Orange peel

Zinci suplhas

Zinc sulphate. Zinc is a naturally occurring mineral. Zinc is important for growth and for the development and health of body tissues.

Zinc sulfate is used to treat and to prevent zinc deficiency and it also helps in the immune system function.


Sodii salicyl

Sodium salicylate is a sodium salt of salicylic acid. It can be prepared from sodium phenolate and carbon dioxide under higher temperature and pressure. Historically, it has been synthesized by refluxing methyl salicylate (wintergreen oil) with an excess of sodium hydroxide. It is used in medicine as an analgesic and antipyretic. Sodium salicylate also acts as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), and induces apoptosis in cancer cells and also necrosis.It is also a potential replacement for aspirin for people sensitive to it. It may also be used as a phosphor for the detection of vacuum ultraviolet radiation and electrons.


Sodii Salicyl apothecary jar

Sodii benz

Sodium benzoate is best known as a preservative used in processed foods and beverages to extend shelf life, though it has several other uses.

It’s an odorless, crystalline powder made by combining benzoic acid and sodium hydroxide. Benzoic acid is a good preservative on its own, and combining it with sodium hydroxide helps it dissolve in products.


Sodium benzoate does not occur naturally, but benzoic acid is found in many plants, including cinnamon, cloves, tomatoes, berries, plums, apples, and cranberries. Additionally, certain bacteria produce benzoic acid when fermenting dairy products like yogurt.


Calc hypophos

SBL Calcarea Hypophos Trituration Tablet is a homoeopathic medicine primarily used for the treatment of abscesses and anaemia. It helps in improving vitality and also corrects digestive orders. It helps in reducing weakness and fatigue and enhances energy levels in the body.


Liq ferr perchlor

Liquid ferric perchlorate. It is used in the process of manufacturing batteries and also used in pyrotechnics. Perchlorate is a negatively charged molecule made of one chlorine atom and four oxygen atoms. Perchlorate can occur naturally or be man-made.


Where is perchlorate found?


Perchlorate occurs naturally in arid states in the Southwest United States (U.S.), in nitrate fertilizer deposits in Chile, and in potash ore in the U.S. and Canada. Perchlorate also forms naturally in the atmosphere. Manufactured perchlorate is used as an industrial chemical and can be found in rocket propellant, explosives, fireworks, and road flares. Because perchlorate is in the environment, it has been found in some drinking water and in some foods. In addition, small amounts of of perchlorate (not to exceed 1.2 percent by weight of the finished polymer) may be used as a component in certain containers and food processing equipment for use in contact only with only certain types of dry foods.


Tinct sumbul

Sumbul Radix, commonly known as Sumbul Root, is the dried root of the plant Ferula Sumbul. Sumbul belongs to the Umbelliferæ or Apiaceæ family, otherwise known as the carrot or parsley family. The parts of the plant used medicinally are the root and the rhizome.

Uses – Sumbul root is used as a stimulant and antispasmodic (relieves muscle spasms). Resembling valerian in the way it affects the body, it is administered to treat various hysterical conditions. Sumbul root is believed to be particularly effective on the pelvic organs and as a stimulant to mucous membranes. It is therefore employed to treat dysenteries and respiratory conditions such as bronchitis. The root has been used throughout history in Persia and India as incense in religious ceremonies as well as medicinally.


Carrots in a hessian sack

Characteristics – Sumbul root has a strong musk-like odour and a bitter, aromatic taste. The root varies a lot in size but it is usually between 2.5cm and 7.5cm in diameter, and between 18mm to 25mm thick. The pieces of root are covered on the outer surface with a dusky-brown wrinkled cork, sometimes covered with short bristly fibres. Internally they are spongy, coarsely fibrous, and a dirty yellowish-brown.


Pulv Rhei comp

Pulvis Rhei Compositus. U. S., Br. Compound Powder of Rhubarb. Pulv. Rhei Co.

Action and Uses. - Rhubarb when chewed increases the flow of saliva. Small doses have a tonic and astringent action and are employed in atonic dyspepsia, especially when there is an accumulation of mucus in the intestinal tube. Large doses are purgative in their action, increasing peristalsis. This is followed by an astringent effect. It is especially useful in cases of diarrhoea associated with worms, or when there is some irritating body in the intestines : the cause of irritation is removed, and then the after-astringent action checks the diarrhoea.



Ferri peroxid

Hydrogen peroxide is a mild antiseptic used on the skin to prevent infection of minor cuts, scrapes, and burns. It may also be used as a mouth rinse to help remove mucus or to relieve minor mouth irritation (such as due to canker/cold sores, gingivitis).


Ferri peroxide apothecary jars

Fenton's reagent is a solution of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and an iron catalyst (typically iron(II) sulfate, FeSO4).[1] It is used to oxidize contaminants or waste water as part of an advanced oxidation process. Fenton's reagent can be used to destroy organic compounds such as trichloroethylene and tetrachloroethylene (perchloroethylene). It was developed in the 1890s by Henry John Horstman Fenton as an analytical reagent.[2][3][4]



Tinct catechu

The extract of this plant is used to treat sore throats and diarrhoea, also useful in high blood pressure, dysentery, colitis, gastric problems, bronchial asthma, cough, leucorrhoea and leprosy. It is used as mouthwash for mouth, gum, sore throat, gingivitis, dental and oral infections.


Salicine

Found in willow bark. The use of willow bark dates to the time of Hippocrates (400 BC) when people were advised to chew on the bark to reduce fever and inflammation. Willow bark has been used throughout the centuries in China and Europe, and continues to be used today for the treatment of pain (particularly low back pain and osteoarthritis), headache, and inflammatory conditions, such as bursitis and tendinitis. The bark of white willow contains salicin, which is a chemical similar to aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid). What is salicin used for?

In combination with the herb's powerful anti-inflammatory plant compounds (called flavonoids), salicin is thought to be responsible for the pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory effects of the herb. In fact, in the 1800s, salicin was used to develop aspirin.


The apothecary jars that form this particular collection appear to be largely (but not exclusively) made up of natural herbal remedies found in plants and plant based foods.





Related Posts

See All

コメント


bottom of page