The Poison that Cures

It started with King Mithridates IV of Pontus (132 - 63 BCE), who was afraid of being poisoned. He wanted to know all about poisons, so he not only tested them on criminals so he would understand their symptoms (and antidotes), but also he ingested the poisons himself in order to build tolerance. His personal physician developed for him a universal antidote which he named mithridatum, composed of 40 ingredients, including opium, myrrh, saffron, ginger, and cinnamon.

Mithridates' method of self-inoculation worked so well that, when he was captured by Pompey, he tried to poison himself, but the poison had no effect. His writings about developing the cure-all was found by Pompey's people and translated into Latin. Nero's physician added more ingredients, most notably mashed and roasted viper's flesh.

The search for a panacea, a universal cure, has a long history. Mithridatum is one example. The Greek physician Galen (mentioned many times in this blog) wrote an entire book on the making of his cure-all; he called it Galene after himself, but it also became known as theriac (from the Greek word for a wild beast); it contained viper's flesh, opium, honey, wine, cinnamon, and more than 70 other ingredients. It needed to ferment for six years and then be applied orally or topically; it kept its potency for 40 years.

In the 7th century a theriac made by the inhabitants of Anatolia was given to the emperor of the Tang Dynasty. The Tang apothecary declared its usefulness against a hundred illnesses. The Middle East called it Tiryaq. Medieval English apothecaries called it "Venice Treacle" because it came from the Mediterranean, and was distributed by the Worshipful Company of Grocers. "Treacle"? Yes. Produced from cane sugar, the thick and sweet syrup was considered "good for what ails you"; the word is actually linked to theriac. In modern medicine, the word "treacle" is defined as

A medicinal compound once in wide use as an antidote to poisons. Treacle was a kind of salve. It was reputed to be a remedy against venomous bites in particular and against poisons in general. It also came to be considered a "cure" for cancer. [source]

In Henry Grosmont's 1354 treatise,  Le Livre de Seyntz Medicines or "The Book of Holy Medicines," he mentions theriac: "the treacle is made of poison so that it can destroy other poisons."

You may ask: if they believed it was so effective, wouldn't they try to make vast amounts to keep on hand? Would they try it as a cure for the Bubonic Plague? Well, one man thought that was a good idea, but ... well, we can talk about him next time.