Introduction - Uppsala Monitoring Centre

and provokes the body.’ He was said to have used charred mercury
for external use on itchy skin (Abramowitz, 1934).
8th Century AD
The first acknowledged alchemist was Geber alias Abou Moussah
Djafar al Sofi alias Abu Musa Jabir ibn Hayyan (702 – 766 AD) in the
8th century. He wrote on sulphur, mercury, arsenic, gold, silver, lead,
tin, copper, iron, and magnesium (Waite, 1970). The discovery of
sulphuric acid (H 2 SO 4 ), nitric acid (HNO 3 ) and hydrochloric acid (HCl)
has also been attributed to him. He wrote ‘Kitab 30 Assomoum wa
Dafu Madariha’ [Poisons and their antidotes], in which he described
poisons by their traits and natural origins, modes of action, dosages,
methods of administration and choice of drugs. He also identified the
target organ of each poison (Saad et al., 2006).
794–5 AD The first paper factory was set up in Baghdad (Holmyard, 1935).
800 AD The monks of the Benedictine monastery at Monte Cassino in
southern Italy used a mixture of opium, henbane, mulberry juice,
lettuce, hemlock, mandragora and ivy, which had been soaked up by
dry mushrooms and allowed to dry. It was called Spongia somnifera,
[Sleep-bringing sponge] and they were softened and then were
tamped into the nostrils and the ingredients were then absorbed
percutaneously (Daems, 1970). However there is evidence that the
Spongia somnifera was ineffective (Priorschi, 2003). This monastery
was also associated with the medical school at Salerno (see Salerno
1140 AD).
808 AD Japanese authors wrote ‘Datong Leiqi Fang’ [A generalisation of the
ancient native herb formulas] (Dharmananda, 2008).
(www.itmonline.org/arts/kampo.htm.) Accessed 26 th June 2008.
Abu Hasan ‘Ali ibn Sahl Rabban al-Tabari who was born in 808. He
wrote several medical books, the most famous of which is his
‘Paradise of Wisdom’, completed in 850. He warned that one mithqal
(about 4 grams) of opium or henbane causes sleep and also death.
(http://miasrirahayu.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/mengetahui-sejarahkefarmasian.html.)
Accessed 7th April 2013
813–873 AD Ibn Wahshiyah wrote ‘Kitab al-sumum’ [Book on poisons]
Henbane ‘This is a drug in which there is an injurious poison which
is fatal through cold and dryness, drying of the blood and its clotting
in the heart and veins...it is fatal in one to two days..his mind
30 Kitab = book