Ancient uses

The most ancient uses of spices appear to be therapeutic in nature. The use of spices was common in China but tittle, if any, authentic Chinese records exist to confirm this. According to Chinese myths and legends, Shen Nung, the Divine Cultivator, founded Chinese medicine and discovered the curative powers of many herbs. He is said to have described more than 100 plants in a treatise reportedly written in 2700 BC. It has been shown, however, that no written language was available in China at that time. Although some of the herbal uses in the treatise go back several centuries BC, the work seems to have been produced by unknown authors in the first century AD. Other records on the use of cassia and ginger are known to have been written in the fifth and fourth centuries BC, in the latter case by Confucius. 

TABLE 3 Composition, Properties, and Ancients Uses of Common Minerals and Mineraloids... 

The ancient use of lithic tools is generally determined from an analysis of their shape. The latter is frequently assessed by analogy to modern equivalents, or by making experimental replicas and using them for different tasks. 

Mastic. Mastic is the resin obtained from the small mastic tree Pistacia lentis-cus, of the sumac family, found chiefly in Mediterranean countries. When the bark of the tree is injured, the resin exudes as drops. Mastic is transparent and pale yellow to green in color. The main ancient uses of mastic were as an adhesive, for making varnish, as a medicine, and for flavoring. 

Mercury - the atomic number is 80 and the chemical symbol is Hg. The name derives from the Roman god Mercury , the nimble messenger of the gods, since the ancients used that name for the element, which was known from prehistoric times. The chemical symbol, Hg, derives from the Greek hydragyrium for liquid silver or quick silver. 

ORIGIN OF NAME Although ancients used zinc compounds, the name "zinc" is assumed to be derived from the German word z/hn, which was related to tin. 

Although the etymologies of the numerous terms that have broadly been applied to asbestos are clear, their usage in many instances have not been consistent. The following illustrates the wide range of terminology, perceptions, sources, and ancient uses of the term asbestos ... 

Herodotus (484-425 B.C.) mentioned the occurrence of many lumps of bitumen in the River Is, a small tributary of the Euphrates (10). The Babylonians heated this bitumen and used it instead of mortar for cementing together the bricks of their walls and buildings (11). Herodotus also spoke of a well near Susa (the Shushan of the Bible) which yielded bitumen, salt, and oil (11). Cornelius Tacitus, a friend of Pliny the Younger, described the bitumen of the Dead Sea (12). R. J. Forbes states in his book Bitumen and Petroleum in Antiquity that the ancients used tar and pitch for waterproofing pottery, for caulking ships, and for making torches, paint for roofs and walls, and lampblack for paints and ink (13). 

Now there is no simple substance known which gives two such rays m this part of the spectrum one may theiefore conclude the certain existence of a simple unknown substance, belonging to the group of alkali metals. We propose to give this new metal the name cesium (symbol Cs) from caesius, which the ancients used to designate the blue of the upper part of the firmament. This name seems to us to be justified by the facility with which one may confirm, by the beautiful blue color of the incandescent vapor of this new element, the presence of a few millionths of a milligram of this simple substance mixed with soda, lithia, and strontia (4, 29, 30)... 

The ancient use of tin in bronze is established by many such data from many localities. 

Some firmly believe in them and others do not. The following text enumerates the consensus on herbal plants and their ancient uses. Although their usage is common, they have never been... 

Ancient uses of daffodil components included systemic administration for hysterical affections, emesis, dysentery, chronic bronchial congestion, ague, and spasms. In addition, a plaster made of the roots was applied topically to dissolve hard swellings. An extract of the bulbs was also applied to open wounds, presumably as a crude anti-inflammatory agent, although wound treatment with Narcissus bulb extract could produce staggering, numbness of the whole nervous system, and paralysis of the heart. ... 

There is no unequivocal archeological evidence showing ancient use of cohoba or epend snuffs. However, widespread shamanic use and the considerable mythology associated with both botanical sources of DMT suggest that such traditions go far into the past. Snuffing artifacts have been found all over South America, though these implements may have been used for tobacco. 

Central Fire, Secret Fire, and Elemental or Common Fire. We will be developing a deeper understanding of these various fires as we go. For now, let us examine the lowest grade of fire, that with which we are most familiar—common fire. At the practical level, the ancients used Common Fire in a system of graded heats often called the Four Degrees of Fire. 

Another ancient use for safflower is to make dyes. The principal dye, carthamin, is a bright red colorant that is extracted from red-flowered plants after the yellow dye has been leached with water. Carthamin (C43H42O22) imparts a scarlet red color to silk and cotton (173-176). Fine examples of its durability from ancient times can be found in museums in Egypt, China, and Japan (3). Safflower yellow pigment (C16H20O11) must be removed to allow the red dye to be extracted in earlier times the yellow was discarded. A factory has been established in Xinjiang, China, to manufacture large quantities of both types of dye (173). 

By my definition, superfruits should be all about sustaining regular healthy intake of nutrients from wholefoods, not processed, blended, and diluted juices—a definition that maybe surprising to you. Did you know that most of the juices that stimulated the concept of superfruits are highly processed so that there is little left in them except color and taste They are marketed on myths of ancient uses for unproved health benefits, not on the nutrient value of the natural fruit that this book emphasizes. 

In a book about herbs, the Chinese scholar-emperor Shen Nung described in 2735 BC the beneficial effects of Ch ang Shan in the treatment of fevers [8]. This preparation is the powdered root of a plant, Dichroafehrifitga Lour. Modern medicinal chemistry has identified several alkaloids with antimalarial properties in the plant, and it is therefore clear that the ancient use of Ch ang Shan in fevers was not entirely without basis. One of the antimalarial compounds from Ch ang Shan is fihrugine (/J-dichroine), a relatively simple unichiral compound 1. Modem attempts to develop these agents as antimalarial drugs failed, due to significant toxicity [8]. 

With its sickly yellow color and rotten-egg odor, the ancients used to call it brimstone and mined it for religious purposes. In modern times, we call it sulfur and use it to make countless useful items. 

The toxicity of arsenic is certainly better known among the general public than that of other heavy elements on account of its ancient use as a poison. 

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