147 + +Ĭhinese emperor who experimented with poisons and antidotes and wrote treatise on herbal medicine

The Sumerians, in circa 4500 b.c., were said to worship the deity Gula, who was known as the 'mistress of charms and spells' and the 'controller of noxious poisons' ( Table 1–1). Magicians, sorcerers, and religious figures were the toxicologists of antiquity. 123 The 'penalty of the peach' involved the administration of peach pits, which we now know contain the cyanide precursor amygdalin, as an ordeal poison. Some agents, such as the Calabar bean ( Physostigma venenosum) containing physostigmine, were referred to as 'ordeal poisons.' Ingestion of these substances was believed to be lethal to the guilty and harmless to the innocent. 97, 147 These poisons were thought to have mystical properties, and their use was surrounded by superstition and intrigue. that is considered to be among the earliest medical texts, describes many ancient poisons, including aconite, antimony, arsenic, cyanogenic glycosides, hemlock, lead, mandrake, opium, and wormwood. The Ebers Papyrus, an ancient Egyptian text written circa 1500 b.c.

They were used for hunting, waging war, and sanctioned and unsanctioned executions. The earliest poisons consisted of plant extracts, animal venoms, and minerals.

Universal antidote for poisoning