It was the most expensive and in-demand medicine in Europe. Mithridate really took off in the Middle Ages. And rather than a potion that would build up a tolerance to poison, Mithridate became known as the potion that could neutralise any poison. John’s wort, various gum resins, turpentine, saffron, rose leaves, and much more. By the time of Galen (the famous medical researcher and personal physician of Marcus Aurelius and Commodus) the concoction included frankincense, myrrh, parsley, cinnamon, ginger, poppy, rockfoil, St. As the recipe was passed down it kept picking up new ingredients. It became a medicine for the emperors of Rome, from Julius Caesar to Nero to Marcus Aurelius. The recipe of this potion – now called Mithridate or Mithridatum – was reportedly taken back to Rome by Pompey. ![]() It was so effective that when the time came to poison himself it had no effect – Mithridates had to ask an officer to stab him instead. Yes, pretty much “I spent the last few years building up an immunity to iocane powder.” Except that Mithridates supposedly took this to the extreme, creating a potion that was a combination of dozens of different substances. Mithridates’ father died by poison, so the new king had begun taking small doses of poison to build up a tolerance against them. He engaged in a series of wars with Rome, many of which were successful, but following a major loss to the Roman general Pompey he tried to poison himself. Mithridates was a king of Pontus and Lesser Armenia (parts of modern Turkey and the land surrounding the Black Sea) around the last years of the Roman Republic. ![]() ![]() Jebulon, Public domain, via Wikimedia CommonsĪt the start of this year when writing about poison damsels and mad honey I promised a post on the potion of Mithridates… so here it is.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |