Wolfsbane, monk's hood (Aconitum) delivers a lethal dose of poison. In the ancient world, poison plays a vital part, from death by elixir...

Women scientists work wonders in the ancient world. Science in history includes astrology, astronomy, medicine, alchemy, chemistry,...

Chun Yuyan (Chunyu Yan) is a Chinese court official in the 1st century BCE, during the Han Dynasty. As obstetrician and gynecologist to...

Vermilion (vermillion) is a brilliant red, orange-red or scarlet pigment obtained by grinding cinnabar (HgS), a sulfur and mercury ore. A...

Cinnabar or mercury sulfide (HgS) is a rock composed of mercury (Hg) and sulfur (S). Historically it's used to make vermillion or scarlet...

Qin Shihuang (Qin Shi Huang) is China's first Emperor. He ascends to the throne as King at age 13 in 246 BCE. Twenty five years later he...

Chinese alchemical elixir poisoning in ancient China is generally a death of the rich. Poisoning occurs over time or swiftly, caused by...

Cherry laurel (Prunus laurocerasus) is an Old World evergreen species of the cherry family. Often mistaken for edible bay laurel, Prunus...

Grayanotoxins are neurotoxins. They're active ingredients in mad honey, produced by bees harvesting pollen and nectar of plants carrying...

Rhododendron is a plant genus of the heather family. With bright showy flowers, this glamorous perennial is known for medicinal...

Veratrum album (white hellebore, false hellebore) is a poisonous plant in the family Melanthiaceae. Used in ancient natural medicine for...

Black hellebore (Helleborus niger) or Christmas Rose is a plant of the Helleborus sub-family, used in folk medicine and lethal poisons....

Tanning hides is practiced in the ancient world since c. 7000 BCE, in the Indus Valley site of Mehgarh. By 2500 BCE, Sumerians of...

Mad honey comes from a group of plant-produced neurotoxins named after Leucothoe grayana, a plant native to Japan. Grayanotoxins can...

Mugworts are used in folk medicine of India, China, Europe, America and other regions. A member of Artemisia , mugwort is also called...

Yarrow is an herb of magic and medicine. A flowering plant native to the northern hemisphere yarrow (Achillea millefolium) is commonly...

White pigments used in ancient art, spirituality and beauty include bone, limestone variations like chalk and other natural sources....

Ephedra is a genus of shrub growing in hot arid and semi-arid regions throughout the world. As a natural health medicine plant and...

Scorpion men (Akkadian: girtablullû, aqrabuamelu) make an appearance in various Akkadian language myths. They include the Enûma Elish...

Disaster strikes as the first plague of tularemia or rabbit fever breaks out in the ancient Hittite Empire in the 14th century BCE....