For the radiation therapy machine involved in several accidents, see Therac-25.
Preparation of theriac: illustration from the Tacuinum sanitatisAndromachus the Elder on horseback, questioning a patient who has received a snake bite. Kitâb al-Diryâq ("The Book of Theriac"), 1198-1199, Syria.[1]
Theriac or theriaca is a medical concoction originally labelled by the Greeks in the 1st century AD and widely adopted in the ancient world as far away as Persia, China and India via the trading links of the Silk Route.[2] It was an alexipharmic, or antidote for a variety of poisons and diseases. It was also considered a panacea,[3] a term for which it could be used interchangeably: in the 16th century Adam Lonicer wrote that garlic was the rustic's theriac or Heal-All.[4]
The word theriac comes from the Greek term θηριακή (thēriakē), a feminine adjective signifying "pertaining to animals",[5] from θηρίον (thērion), "wild animal, beast".[6] The ancient bestiaries included information—often fanciful—about dangerous beasts and their bites. When cane sugar was an exotic Eastern commodity, the English recommended the sugar-based treacle as an antidote against poison,[7] originally applied as a salve.[8] By extension, treacle could be applied to any healing property: in the Middle Ages the treacle (i.e. healing) well at Binsey was a place of pilgrimage.
Norman Cantor observes[9] that the remedy's supposed effect followed the homeopathic principle of "the hair of the dog", whereby a concoction containing some of the poisonous (it was thought) flesh of the serpent would be a sovereign remedy against the creature's venom: in his book on medicine,[10] Henry of Grosmont, 1st Duke of Lancaster, wrote that "the treacle is made of poison so that it can destroy other poisons".[11] Another rationale for including snake flesh was the widespread belief that snakes contained an antidote to protect themselves against being poisoned by their own venom.[12] Thinking by analogy, Henry Grosmont also thought of theriac as a moral curative, the medicine "to make a man reject the poisonous sin which has entered into his soul". Since the plague, and notably the Black Death, was believed to have been sent by God as a punishment for sin and had its origins in pestilential serpents that poisoned the rivers, theriac was a particularly appropriate remedy or therapeutic.[13] By contrast, Christiane Fabbri argues[14] that theriac, which very frequently contained opium, actually did have palliative effect against pain and reduced coughing and diarrhea.
^Pancaroǧlu, Oya (2001). "Socializing Medicine: Illustrations of the Kitāb al-diryāq". Muqarnas. 18: 155–172. doi:10.2307/1523306. ISSN 0732-2992. JSTOR 1523306.
^Cite error: The named reference boulnois was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^
Griffin, J. P. (2004). "Venetian treacle and the foundation of medicines regulation". British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology. 58 (3). Wiley: 317–25. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2125.2004.02147.x. PMC 1884566. PMID 15327592.
^A. Vogel, "Allium sativum". 'Plant Encyclopedia.
^θηριακή. Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; A Greek–English Lexicon at the Perseus Project.
Theriac or theriaca is a medical concoction originally labelled by the Greeks in the 1st century AD and widely adopted in the ancient world as far away...
used by herbalists and apothecaries to describe a medicine (also called theriac or theriaca), composed of many ingredients, that was used as an antidote...
where it was in continual use for centuries. An updated recipe called theriac (Theriacum Andromachi) was known well into the 19th century. Mithridate...
rhubarb root (Rheum palmatum) saffron senna (Senna alexandrina) theriac venetian (theriac) (a mixture of many herbs and other substances) zedoary root (Curcuma...
is the major solvent and the ingredient is often highly concentrated. Theriac Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Elixir" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 9...
and the uses of theriacs. "In treatises such as On Theriac to Piso, On Theriac to Pamphilius, and On Antidotes, Galen identified theriac as a sixty-four-ingredient...
Herbalism Traditional Chinese medicine History of pharmacy Pharmacist Theriac Worshipful Society of Apothecaries Awofeso, N. (2013). Organisational capacity...
gave temporary relief. Also many of his remedies contained the famed "theriac", a preparation derived from oriental medicine sometimes containing opium...
daily with wine. Andromachus the Elder, Nero's court physician, developed theriac (theriaca Andromachi) by supplementing the versions of Mithridates' formula...
immemorial to produce nabulsi soap and as an electuary in compounding theriac for use in treating scorpion stings, as well as for extracting potassium...
about the year 199. However, there is a reference in Galen's treatise "On Theriac to Piso" (which may, however, be spurious) to events of 204. There are...
21 August 2020. Archived from the original on 10 March 2021. "The Grand Theriac". thedawoodibohras.com. 26 August 2020. Archived from the original on 13...
Galen, writing in the second century, eulogized garlic as the "rustic's theriac" (cure-all) (see F. Adams' Paulus Aegineta, p. 99). Alexander Neckam, a...
Septuagint has ῥητίνη, "pine resin". The Arabic version and Castell hold it for theriac. Lee supposes it to be "mastich". Luther and the Swedish version have "salve"...
(poem) by Nicander of Colophon, Greek poet of 2nd century BC Theriaca or Theriac, ancient Greek remedy Venice treacle, also called Andromachi theriaca,...
classical antiquity and was a standard component of ancient concoctions called theriacs, from the Mithridate of Aulus Cornelius Celsus' De Medicina (c. 30 CE)...
a variety of toxins by regular exposure to small doses. Mithridate and theriac, polypharmaceutical electuaries claiming descent from his formula and initially...
990) became renown for his skills in compounding medicines, especially theriac, an antidote for poisons. His works, many of which no longer survive, are...
al-Diryâq (Arabic: كتاب الدرياق, romanized: Kitāb al-diryāq, "The Book of Theriac"), or Book of anditodes of pseudo-Galen, is a medieval manuscript allegedly...
example, when the proportions of the ingredients in Theriac change vis-à-vis one another, the form of Theriac changes, and it takes on a different form. And...
to dissolve the ingredients for theriac, claiming that "it preserves the healthy" and "cures the sick." But theriac was a controversial drug; in the...
doctor Plague doctor contract Plague doctor costume Tacuinum Sanitatis Theriac Timeline of medicine and medical technology Treatise on Herbs Black, Winston...
ISBN 9781134694778. Philostratus Vitae sophistarum ii. 24, 25. § 4, 26. § 3; Galen, De Theriac. ad Pison. ii. p. 458; Eudoc. p. 57. Paul M. M. Leunissen, Konsuln und...
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