The Natural History of Pliny, Volume 5 (of 6)

Chapter 401: CHAP. 77.—THE LEUCE, MESOLEUCON, OR LEUCAS: THREE REMEDIES.

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This volume catalogs remedies derived from forest trees and wild plants, presenting systematic entries for dozens of species with prescribed treatments and applications. It enumerates specific uses for resins, barks, leaves, berries, and sap, and gives instructions on preparation, dosage, and testing of potency. The text also records variations among species, regional observations on growth and harvesting, and anecdotes on how certain plants were discovered or associated with animals and human practices. Overall it functions as a practical herbal compendium combining botanical description with medicinal recipes and empirical notes.

CHAP. 77.—THE LEUCE, MESOLEUCON, OR LEUCAS: THREE REMEDIES.

Leuce,1932 a plant resembling mercurialis,1933 has received its name 1934 from the circumstance that a white line runs through the middle of the leaf; for which reason also, some give it the name of “mesoleucon.”1935 The juice of this plant is curative of fistula, and the plant itself, bruised, is good for carcinomata. It is probably the same plant as that called “leucas,” so remarkably efficacious for the venom of all kinds of marine animals. Authors have not given a description of it, beyond telling us that the wild leucas has larger leaves than the other, and has properties more strongly developed: they state also that the seed of the cultivated kind is the more acrid of the two.