In today's online edition of the UK's The Telegraph, there is an article about the discovery of this ancient first aid kit fould on a Roman ship that went down around 130 BCE off the coast of Tuscany. In a wooden chest containing tin-lined wooden vials they found "pills made of ground-up vegetables, herbs and plants such as celery, onions, carrots, cabbage, alfalfa and chestnuts – all ingredients referred to in classical medical texts."
The article goes on to say:
"The pills are the oldest known archaeological remains of ancient pharmaceuticals".
Well, to my mind, botanical-based remedies are not 'pharma'-ceuticals but rather "phyto'-ceuticals, again underscoring the ancient traditions of healing with medicinal botanicals.
Read the entire article here:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/8627715/Roman-era-shipwreck-reveals-ancient-medical-secrets.html
(Many thanks to Gabrielle on the herbstudent@yahoogroups.com for bringing this article to our attention!)
