Men, methods and materials: exploring the historical connections between geology and medicine

CHRISTOPHER J. DUFFIN1,2 1Department of Earth Sciences, The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK 2146 Church Hill Road, Sutton, Surrey SM3 8NF, UK cduffi[email protected]

Gold Open Access: This article is published under the terms of the CC-BY 3.0 license

Historical backdrop be spoken over beads of lapis lazuli, jasper and mal- achite, which were then threaded to form an amu- A conference entitled A History of Geology and letic necklace for a sick child (Erman 1901, p. 9). Medicine, convened by the History of Geology In the Greek and Roman schools there was some Group and held at Burlington House in November intrinsic interest in geological materials (as in the 2011, formed the basis of the first known volume work of Theophrastus, for example, in the third cen- dedicated to the historical links between medicine tury BC). The greater part of the written legacy pre- and geology (Duffin et al. 2013). Although the served for us, however, is associated with the meeting was somewhat exploratory in its approach, medicinal output of Greek and Roman healers, it was obvious that the themes encountered were including Galen of Pergamon (c. 130–c. 210) and worthy of further investigation, which led directly Pedanius Dioscorides (first century), and the eclec- to a second meeting in November 2014, the fruits tic writings of Pliny the Elder (23–79), replete of which form the core of the present volume. with contemporary Roman folklore. The humoral As independent disciplines, medicine and geol- theory of medicine was overlain by emerging ogy have markedly different origins, but their prac- notions of the Doctrine of Signatures, which saw tical applications intersect very early on in human geological materials being prescribed for various history. The possible use of bone needles for sutur- ailments on the basis of common characters, form ing in the Palaeolithic, and the widespread appli- and colour; the phallic shapes of fossil cidaroid echi- cation of (and survival from) trepanation in the noid spines, for example, initially determined their Neolithic, show that elements of medical practice use in the treatment of urogenital conditions. had already been established during the Stone With the conquest of Greece by Rome and the Age. The forsaking of hunter-gatherer lifestyles in subsequent decline of the Roman Empire, the spread favour of settled agricultural existences allowed of Islam during the seventh and eighth centuries saw the development of new medical skills including a burst of Muslim scholarship characterizing the wound-healing and bone-setting, as well as encour- ‘Islamic Golden Age’, which lasted well into the aging the development of written records of medical thirteenth century. Interest in minerals was, again, knowledge, especially in Babylonian (cuneiform) primarily associated with their supposed therapeutic and Egyptian (hieroglyphic) texts. These writings virtues as, for example, in the works of Al-Biruni clearly demonstrate the burgeoning connections (Abu¯ al-Rayha¯n Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Bı¯ru¯nı¯, between medicine and geology, as mineral drugs or Alberonius_ in Latin:_ 973–1048)_ and Ahmad ibn were incorporated wholesale into the materia med- Yusuf al-Tı¯fa¯chı¯ (1184–1253). At the same time, ica; Campbell Thompson (1936), for example, iden- a new emphasis on experimentation led to profound tified 120 mineral drugs cited in the clay tablets changes in scientific methodology which, in turn, excavated from King Assurbanipal of Assyria’s resulted in a revitalization of the understanding of Library at Nineveh, and minerals are significant medicine in the hands of such luminaries as Muham- inclusions in the medicinal recipes detailed in Egyp- mad ibn Zakariya¯Ra¯zı¯ (Rhazes: 865–925) and Abu¯ tian medical papyri (Duffin 2013). Whilst many ,Alı¯ al-Husayn ibn ,Abd Alla¯h ibn Sı¯na¯ (Avicenna: minerals were used as medicinal simples, some c. 980–1037),_ each of whom also referred to the were amuletic and their magico-medicinal efficacy therapeutic application of geological materials in supposedly depended on spoken charms or religious his writings. At the same time, the rise of alchemy liturgies. One papyrus fragment in the A¨ gyptisches was able to lay the early foundations of chemistry. Museum und Papyrussammlung in Berlin (Berlin Meanwhile, in the Latin West, the centres of P.3027), for example, records how a charm should higher learning during the early Middle Ages were

From:Duffin, C. J., Gardner-Thorpe,C.&Moody, R. T. J. (eds) 2017. Geology and Medicine: Historical Connections. Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 452,1–8. First published online April 26, 2017, https://doi.org/10.1144/SP452.19 # 2017 The Author(s). Published by The Geological Society of London. Publishing disclaimer: www.geolsoc.org.uk/pub_ethics

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Monastic Schools that preserved the teaching performed by Andreas Vesalius (1514–64) and and continuance of science in a strongly religious published in his ground breaking work of 1543 environment. Prominent characters who incorpo- (De humani corporibus fabrica). rated geological materials in their medical writings The demand for metals stimulated the taking of and in encyclopaedic compilations of knowledge great strides in the location, extraction and refine- included the Abbess Hildegard von Bingen ment of ores, the products of which were so crucial (1098–1179), Isidore of Seville (Isidorus Hispalen- to the work of the alchemists. Georg Agricola sis: c. 560–636) and Rabanus Maurus Magnentius (1494–1555) famously published his De Re Metal- (c. 780–856). During the later Middle Ages, the lica (posthumously) in 1556 (Vesalius 1556). Inter- Monastic Schools gave way to the establishment est in the natural world during the sixteenth century of medieval universities during the twelfth century. was also marked by the incorporation of geological, Highly productive interchange between these insti- botanical, zoological, historical and ethnographical tutions and the Islamic world meant that previously specimens into cabinets of curiosity. Apothecaries lost classical texts and those of new Arabic scholar- and professors of medicine were among those who ship were made available to the West; a furious made and wrote about their collections, including programme of translation and copying at dedi- the Neapolitan Ferrante Imperato (1550–1625), cated scriptoria ushered in a medieval renaissance. Francesco Calceolari I (1521–1600 or 1522– The rise of scholasticism saw the rediscovery of 1606) from Verona, Michel Mercati (1541–93) Aristotelianism and the emergence of notable phi- from the Vatican in Rome, Ole Worm (1588– losophers and encyclopaedists, who, once again, 1654) from Copenhagen and Michael Bernhard largely combined knowledge of geological materi- Valentini (1657–1729) of Giessen. als with their suggested pharmaceutical applica- Following a period of description of the elements tions. These scholars included such famous names of the natural world, the seventeenth and eighteenth as Thomas of Cantimpre´ (1201–72), Bartholo- centuries were marked by increasingly successful maeus Anglicus (before 1203–72), Vincent de attempts to rationalize, systematize and produce Beauvais (c. 1190–1264), Albertus Magnus (c. accessible syntheses of the plant, animal and min- 1200–80) and Konrad von Megenberg (1309–74) eral realms. The establishment of learned societies (see Duffin 2013 for further details). helped to foster intellectual alliances and the cross- A pronounced philosophical shift away from fertilization of ideas, to investigate questions of Aristotelianism as part of the Northern Renaissance interest, and to disseminate the research of their (i.e. in the area north of the Alps, as opposed to the members and fellows through their publications. slightly earlier Italian Renaissance) paved the way The rise of geology as an independent scientific for a closer focus on the individual sciences. The discipline is usually traced back to the first use of advent of printing in the mid-fifteenth century the word ‘geology’ in its modern sense by Ulisse then meant that many individual texts could be pro- Aldrovandi in 1603 (Vai & Cavazza 2006). Aldro- duced rapidly and relatively cheaply (compared to vandi (1522–1605) had broad interests, which are copying texts by hand), ensuring wide and efficient reflected in a wide set of academic achievements, distribution of classical texts, commentaries and new including a degree in philosophy and medicine ideas. It was not long before the ancient and seem- from Bologna (1553), and the teaching of medical ingly unassailable authority of classical authors, botany (1556). The evolution of geological enquiry Galen, Dioscorides Pliny and others, together with benefited from the same fifteenth–seventeenth the assertions of medieval Arabic and European century philosophical and technological innovations authors, was being questioned and challenged. as did medicine, but its development proceeded Blind reliance on received wisdom and an Aristote- at a slower pace. Foundational work was certainly lian approach to scientific enquiry (utilizing obser- accomplished by a suite of renaissance philoso- vation and searching for ‘natural’ circumstances phers, many of whom trained originally in medi- through reasoning) was gradually replaced by cine: for example, Conrad Gessner (1516–65), empiricism, in response to the establishment of City Physician of Zu¨rich, produced the first system- inductive methodologies for scientific inquiry by atic treatment of fossils (Gessner 1565), an approach Francis Bacon (1561–1626). The transition was considerably expanded by Anselm Boetius de Boodt not always a comfortable one, the case of Philippus (1550–1632: Boodt 1609), Court Physician to Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim Emperor Rudolph II in Prague. The great anatomist, (Paracelsus: 1493–1541) and the resurgence of Nicolas Steno (1638–1686), laid the foundations of alchemy being a case in point; this particular revolu- stratigraphy (Steno 1669), as well as introducing tion paved the way for the eventual development of fundamental concepts in crystallography and palae- iatrochemistry and chemical pharmacology. In med- ontology (Steno 1667, 1669). icine, the anatomical precepts of Galen were over- It was not until the nineteenth century that a turned by the closely observed human dissections geology and/or mineralogy syllabus began to

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appear in university curricula, supported by horizons in the London Clay Formation, to Natha- a suitably dedicated professorial staff. This was niel Hodges (1629–88), a London physician who also true for professional geological positions. The is better known as one of the limited number of med- establishment of professional societies in the same ical personnel who remained in the capital to care century, as well as the rise in education of the middle for the sick during the year of the Great Plague and lower classes, the popularity and activities of (1665). Once established, use of the Shooter’s Hill field clubs, and public lectures meant that, once an waters by local people continued for more than unseen threshold had been breached, geology 200 years; at one point it enjoyed fame as a more enjoyed both a popular and a professional renais- prolific and cheaper source of Epsom salts (magne- sance. The intervening centuries of the early modern sium sulphate) than the more established centres of period drew its geological innovation and expertise production at Epsom and Acton. from a variety of polymaths, and established profes- The water theme is continued by Porro et al. sions including the church and, especially, medi- (2016) in their consideration of the ways in which cine. Thus, the history of geology is littered with the complex needs of the Milanese water supply sys- the names of medical and medically trained profes- tem were addressed at the end of the nineteenth cen- sionals who made fundamental contributions to the tury. Shallow wells provided the Milanese with fledgling science. drinking water of sufficiently good quality to main- tain metropolitan health until industrialization of the city took place following the establishment of Men and methods rail linkages. By the 1870s it was clear that the quality of local drinking water was becoming Otto Sperling (1602–81) studied medicine at compromised, so the Cagnola Award was offered Greifswald (1617–18), Leiden (1619–21) and by the Lombard Institute in an open competition Rostock (1622–23), eventually becoming Doctor to undertake a three-component study to address Medicinae at the University of Padua (1627). In the problem. In addition to possible contamination 1641 he was appointed Stadtphysicus in Copenha- by industrial products, other potential threats to gen, and acted as Leibarztes to King Christian IV. the water supply included cemetery and hospital This position brought him into close association wastewater entering the drainage system. Further- with the nobleman and statesman Corfitz Ulfeldt more, the hospitals required access to a non-polluted (1606–64), who was later to be named the worst water supply. The authors trace the historical threads traitor in Danish history. Following the death of of these problems and the various approaches to Christian IV, Ulfeldt was accused of plotting against their final solution. his successor, Frederick III (1609–70); Sperling Italy has long been acknowledged an important fled with Ulfeldt to The Netherlands. Sperling was centre for discussion and the generation of geologi- eventually arrested and held in the infamous Blue cal ideas, especially during the sixteenth and early Tower (Bla˚ta˚rn), a tower specifically used as a pri- seventeenth centuries (Vai & Caldwell 2006). Pan- son at the Royal palace in Copenhagen. Here, Sperl- taloni et al. (2017) present a very useful overview of ing languished for 17 years until his eventual death. the contributions to geology of a succession of med- While incarcerated, Sperling wrote an autobiogra- ically trained Italian scientists from late medieval phy for his children. Hoch (2017) uses this autobi- times to the early twentieth century. They consider ography as a means of examining Sperling’s the lives and contributions of some of the household interests in medicine and natural history, with spe- names of the early history of geology, including the cial emphasis on fossils and minerals, against the eminent characters Girolamo Fracastoro (1476– complex backdrop of contemporary Nordic political 1553), Gerolamo Cardano (1501–76), Niels Stensen and intellectual history. (1638–86) and Antonio Vallisneri (1662–1730). The therapeutic use of mineral waters in the UK This is supplemented by consideration of less well- saw something of a renaissance, beginning in known (outside Italy) contributors Francesco Serao Elizabethan times and gathering pace in the late (1702–83), a pioneer of Vesuvian geology, the geo- seventeenth century. As additions to the well- morphologist and stratigrapher Tommaso Antonio established Roman centres at thermal springs (at Catullo (1782–1869), the Sicilian geologist Carlo Bath, for example), numerous cold-water bathing Gemmellaro (1787–1866), and the nineteenth cen- spas became popular, as did the drinking spas in tury geologists Leopoldo Pilla (1805–48), Giuseppe and adjacent to London. One of the earliest of the Ponzi (1805–85), Giuseppe Arcangelo Scacchi London sources of mineral waters was situated at (1811–93), Giuseppe Giovanni Antonio Meneghini Shooter’s Hill, currently located in the Royal Bor- (1811–89), Giulio Andrea Pirona (1822–96) and ough of Greenwich. Mather & Duffin (2016) Gaetano Giorgio Gemmellaro (1832–1904). have ascribed the first notice (1673) of the ‘Purging Georgian London saw a surge of interest in geol- waters’ of Shooter’s Hill, derived from sandy ogy, as reflected in the amassing of collections of

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specimens for personal naturalia cabinets, discus- the freedom to cross poorly defined professional sion of questions of interest at scientific bodies at boundaries by the father was not compatible with the Royal Society and elsewhere, and the production the increasingly stringently defined professional of semi-popular texts by Emanuel Mendes da Costa demarcations experienced by the son. (1717–91) and Sir John Hill (1714–75) (Duffin Another nineteenth century polymath, Victor 2017b). Liston & Alcala´ (2017) consider two prom- Lemoine (1837–97), is the subject of scrutiny by inent late Georgian medical practitioners: William Buffetaut (2016). A native of Reims, a city in the Hunter (1718–83) and James Parkinson (1755– Champagne Region of the Grand Est area of France, 1824). Although sharing a passion for palaeontol- Lemoine studied medicine in Paris before returning ogy, these two great collectors and natural philoso- to his home town where eventually he rose to phers probably never met; a comparison of their become Professor of Medicine at the medical lives and work reveals a good deal of circumstantial school. Possessed of wide-ranging scientific inter- overlap, as well as significant differences, against a ests, his publication record includes papers on med- background of fundamental intellectual upheaval. icine, radiography, embryology, invertebrate Like many medical professionals, the Catalan anatomy and botany. His greatest contribution was physician Pau Estorch Sique´s (1805–71) was a in the sphere of vertebrate palaeontology, with a man of many parts; he was a teacher, poet, transla- long series of papers on the early Tertiary fauna of tor, businessman and arts correspondent. Sabate´ the Cernay Conglomerate (late Thanetian), cropping Casellas & Torres Gallardo (2017) briefly exam- out just to the east of the city. Lemoine described ine the contribution to public health of this individ- various fossil mammals (e.g. Arctocyon, Plesiada- ual who is otherwise now little known outside his pis and Neoplagiaulax), reptiles (champsosaurs) home area. He was instrumental in the setting up and birds (Gastornis). His opinions drew him into of public baths in a place and time when accessible conflict with one of the most influential vertebrate drinking water and effective sewage removal were palaeontologists of the day, the Belgian Louis the exception rather than the rule, thereby ensuring Dollo (1857–1931), and also attracted the attention hygienic accessibility to clean water by members of American palaeontologists Othniel Charles of the community. Estorch Sique´s is also known Marsh (1831–99), Edward Drinker Cope (1840– for his interest in the pedra escurc¸onera (anti- 97) and Henry Fairfield Osborn (1857–1935); the venomous stone) which he called his magnes vene- latter two visited him in Reims to view his collec- norum. Having observed its topical use in the treat- tion. Leaving Reims in 1889 to settle in Paris, ment of snakebite in rural communities, Estorch Lemoine applied the newly developed X-ray tech- Sique´s carried out some clinical trials, concluding nology to the study of entomology and zoology, that the stone was efficacious when used topically and realized its potential in palaeontology; unfortu- and internally against anthrax, rabies, smallpox, nately, he died before he could expand these plague, pustules and some venereal diseases. investigations further. The temporal transition from the nineteenth to the twentieth century was marked not only by con- siderable changes in the intellectual climate but Materials also, with societal and educational transformations, increasing professionalization and specialization in Medicinal earths have been known and exploited science. Carter & Spurgeon (2016) use the father since antiquity (Macgregor 2013). Long believed and son duo of Peter Martin Duncan (1824–91) to be useful for their astringent (shrinking or con- and Cecil Cooke Duncan (1868–1948) to investi- stricting body tissues), alexipharmic (acting as an gate something of the changing development of antidote to poison) and desiccative (drying ability the professions, scientific expertise and changes to or absorbency) properties, medicinal clays have education taking place over this pivotal time period. been exploited from deposits on Greek islands Following a medical apprenticeship, Peter Martin (e.g. Lemnos, Saos, Chios, Kimolos), Malta, Pales- Duncan practised medicine in Colchester. His geo- tine, Armenia, Turkey and various localities in cen- logical interests led to his election as FRS (1868) tral and western Europe. Probably the most famous for his work on fossil corals, and he was able to is lemnian earth (terra lemnia), which was extracted segue into a new career, becoming Professor of under strict ritual observance in classical times, Geology at King’s College, London from 1870, worked into pastilles or troches, and authenticated and President of the Geological Society from 1876 by means of embossed stamps to become terra sigil- to 1878. Cecil Cooke Duncan studied chemistry lata (sealed earths) or Lemnian sphragides (Lem- and went on to become a public analyst. Both Dun- nian seals). Using the Hippocratic Corpus (a cans were accomplished polymaths with wide-rang- collection of around 60 Ancient Greek medical ing scientific, including geological, interests. They works closely associated with Hippocrates and rang- were men of their respective times, however, and ing in date from the fifth to the fourth century BC)

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and the works of Galen (c. 129–c. 210) and Dioscor- mythology; (4) snakestone beads or adder stones, ides (c. 40–90), Retsas (2016) considers the ancient the ovum anguinum of Pliny the Elder; and (5) therapeutic uses of terra lemnia with reference to Ophites, probably referring to serpentinite. the manuscript catalogues of Sir Hans Sloane Snakestone beads are addressed in more detail in (1660–1753). a second contribution from Pymm (2017), who Photos-Jones et al. (2017) subject historical finds they have been associated with fossil cidaroid material of Lemnian sphragides and samples of echinoid tests (as ovum anguinum) and archaeolog- sedimentary clays from a variety of depths recov- ical finds of holed stones, Neolithic and Iron Age ered from Kotsinas (the general area on Lemnos glass and vitreous paste beads, and medieval spindle yielding historically important lemnian earths) to whorls. A survey of their medicinal uses shows that mineralogical, chemical and microbiological analy- they were employed to ease childbirth, and in the sis. Interestingly, they found that the historical treatment of some severe childhood diseases (e.g. sphragides samples demonstrated significant anti- teething, whooping cough and ague), snakebite bacterial properties against the Gram-positive path- and eye diseases, as well as having veterinary appli- ogenic bacterium Staphylococcus aureus, but no cations in the cases of diseased cattle. Furthermore, such effect against the Gram-negative Pseudomonas they were also utilized as charms against witchcraft aeruginosa; the Kotsinas sedimentary clays dis- and the activities of evil spirits, and as amuletic played no such antibacterial effects. The differences lucky stones. between the historical and modern samples may The Eagle stone or Aetites is a fabulous stone be the consequence of secondary fungal metabolites credited with remarkable obsteterical powers; in in the former. Clearly, this is an area worthy of European folklore it was believed to be effective further development. in the control of childbirth by means of magnetic In addition to medicinal clays, some fabulous forces acting on the foetus. Anchoring the stone, stones derived from the bodies of living animals usually a siderite nodule, in the abdominal region have been claimed to have prophylactic and thera- of the pregnant mother supposedly prevented abor- peutic powers since classical times. The Alectorius tion and miscarriage, helping to maintain the posi- or Capon Stone is one such item, commonly tion of the baby within the womb, while delivery reported in lapidary and medical literature from was facilitated by tying it to the leg. Eagle stones the second century BC to the late seventeenth cen- were also used to treat epilepsy, plague, dysentery, tury. Purportedly derived from various parts of the carbuncles and a range of other diseases, as well anatomy of a castrated cockerel, the stone has as deterring snakes and exposing thieves. They been associated in the literature with a wide range were sometimes set in silver mounts and worn as of therapeutic benefits including slaking thirst, amulets. The stone itself was believed to be col- increasing sociability, curing impotence, promoting lected by eagles and taken to their nests, where it conception, increasing lactation and treating dis- was used to ensure successful hatching of the eggs eases of the eye. Carrasco & Duffin (2017) raise and to prevent addling. Podgorny (2017) investi- the hypothesis for further discussion that, if viewed gates the transfer of both the name and its attendant as a biliary calculus, the stone might conceivably therapeutic virtues from early modern Spanish folk possess parasympathomimetic properties: that is, it medicine to South America from the close of the fif- might contain pharmacologically active ingredients teenth century onwards; ‘piedras de a´guila’ of the which, acting as mimics of the parasympathetic ner- Andean region included terebratulid brachiopods vous system, could result in the collection of proper- including Clarkeia anteniensis, spiriferid brachio- ties historically ascribed to it. pods such as Gypospirifer condor and Spirifer boli- A further fabulous stone of animal origin is the viensis, and certain Andean minerals. snake stone or serpent stone. Scouring a wide and The unicorn is a mythical animal. While the ori- diffuse literature, Pymm (2016) produces a classifi- gins of the unicorn myth are open to debate, rever- cation of serpent stones, identifying: (1) dragon ence for, and belief in, the animal clearly took on stones or Draconites, largely mythical stones sup- a life of their own, propagated through classical posedly cut from the head of a living dragon and and medieval legend and lore, and were reinforced which, apart from the Lucerne Dragon stone, seem by the discoveries of supposed actual remains, espe- to be unrepresented by extant specimens; (2) snake cially of the horn. Credited with the valuable prop- stones, supposedly harvested from the heads of erty of being able to detect and neutralize poisons, snakes and used to treat snakebite, with extant spec- unicorn horn became an indispensable therapeutic imens comprising charred bone; (3) ammonite component of the materia medica (being adopted snake stones, associated with the legends of St as a symbol of the apothecary in many European Hilda and St Keyna in the Whitby and Keynsham countries), as well as being pressed into service as areas of Britain, respectively, and also revered as an essential item of assaying tableware at grand Salagrama Sila or avatars of Vishnu in Hindu feasts for the nobility. For example, a servant

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proffers a wine goblet of unicorn horn to the royal eye-catching gems – for example, toad stones (fos- couple, Esther (Jewish Queen) and Ahaseurus (Per- sil fish teeth) – furnish the best examples of clearly sian King), surrounded by musicians, in a fifteenth medicinal amuletic stones. century tapestry depicting the exaltation of Esther The mineralized skeletons of Recent (and, to to the Persian throne (Museo de Tapices de la Seo, a lesser extent, fossil) corals were also popular Cathedral of Zaragoza, Spain: Torra de Arana ingredients in compound medicinal preparations. et al. 1985). The question as to whether unicorn Harvested from the Mediterranean Sea by crude horn goblets and other unicorn e´preuves were actu- bottom-dredging techniques and by individual ally used for assaying purposes during medieval divers, variously coloured corals were employed times is made clear by the protocols developed for medicinally, but the most popular (also as a gem- the banquet celebrating the installation of George stone and item in naturalia cabinets) was the Neville (c. 1432–76) as Archbishop of York and red variety, Corallum rubrum. Sameiro Barroso Chancellor of England in 1467. Unicorn horn was (2016) surveys the various amuletic and therapeutic passed over the tablecloth and tapestry hangings in uses for which coral was recommended by the phy- order to test for poison during the laying out of the sician who became Pope, Petrus Hispanus (c. 1215– banquet linens; the prince washed his hands in 77). He advocated its use both as an amulet and as an water that had previously been tested with unicorn ingredient in a variety of medicines used, for exam- horn, and then dried them on a towel or napkin ple, to treat a range of dental and gastric problems, that had a complex journey to the table including syncope, and as an anti-haemorrhagic. being draped for a time over a unicorn horn sample Utilized since Neolithic times, lead has been held in a small dish. Each of the components of the exploited for numerous purposes, ranging from a meal was assayed by various means before they component in cosmetics through to plumbing mate- reached the table, and each of the drinks was tested rials to the more familiar diversity of industrial, by having a piece of unicorn horn dipped into them military and automotive applications of the present (Stevens 1723, appendix, p. 22; Warner 1791, p. 101 day. Pollution of the atmosphere by anthropogenic ff.; Scully 1995, p. 251). Duffin (2017a) reviews the lead was brought about by inefficient smelting pro- history of unicorn horn as a component of medicinal cesses, the addition of tetraethyl lead to motor fuel, remedies and finds that candidates for the horn and the residual effects use of its military use. The included both narwhal ‘tusks’ and fossil remains, record of atmospheric contamination from various particularly of mammoths. The distinction between lead sources famously has been preserved in the ‘true’ and ‘false’ horn was a matter of furious ratios of the various isotopes of the element in debate, while the incidence of fraudulent substitutes Arctic and Antarctic ice cores. Bergman (2016) necessitated the development of a variety of tests of reviews the history of use of lead as a resource, its authentication. From the late sixteenth century detection and importance as a toxic environmental onwards, further naturally occurring and synthetic contaminant, its uptake by the body, and its impact materials with similar properties to unicorn horn on both human health and the environment. were marketed as mineral unicorn (Terra Silesiaca) We hope it is clear both from this volume and its and Solar unicorn, respectively. These various predecessor that geology and medicine share many ingredients were incorporated into a wide range of historical links; the intellectual roots of both disci- compound pharmaceutical preparations and used plines can be traced to similar and, in some cases, to treat a huge diversity of ailments and conditions. identical, classical, middle eastern and European Precious and semi-precious gems also had a sources; numerous medical personnel not only place in the pharmacopoeia, being incorporated brought innovation to their chosen profession but into various pastes, electuaries and simples to treat also made significant contributions to the develop- those members of the sick who could afford such ment of the Earth Sciences; and a wide range of expensive interventions. The deep, intense colours geological materials has been employed, with vary- and durability of the stones led to beliefs in their ing degrees of efficacy, in the development of the possession of magical virtues. They were also materia medica. The common historical ground used for personal adornment, of course, and there between geology and medicine is rich with further are numerous reports of jewels being ascribed cura- possible research opportunities, and we hope that tive powers, particularly during the sixteenth and this albeit early excursion into the field will prove seventeenth centuries, raising the question as to to be both a useful resource and a stimulus to further whether it is possible to determine whether they enquiry. were worn predominantly for their aesthetic value or for their supposed prophylactic and therapeutic The Editors and the History of Geology Group would like virtues. Blaen (2016) examines this contention to thank the Geological Society of London for their support using written sources and examples of contempo- throughout the development and realization of this project, rary material culture, concluding that the less as well as the considerable number of referees from a wide

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range of academic disciplines who lent their professional Society, London, Special Publications, 375, 7–43, expertise to the critical assessment of the contributions to https://doi.org/10.1144/SP375.25 this volume and the improvement of its content. Duffin, C.J. 2017a. ‘Fish’, fossil and fake: medicinal uni- corn horn. In: Duffin, C.J., Gardner-Thorpe,C.& Moody, R.T.J. (eds) Geology and Medicine: Histori- cal Connections. Geological Society, London, Special References Publications, 452. First published online March 1, 2017, https://doi.org/10.1144/SP452.16 Agricola, G. 1556. De re metallica libri XII. Quibus Duffin, C.J. 2017b. A dwarf on giant’s shoulders: Sir John officia, instrumenta, machinae, ac omnia denique ad Hill and geology. In: Brant,C.&Rousseau, G. (eds) metallicam spectantia, non modo luculentissime Fame & Fortune: Sir John Hill and London Life in the describuntur, sed et per effigies ... adjunctis latinis 1750s. Palgrave, London, in press. germanicisque appellationibu ita ob oculos ponuntur, Duffin, C.J., Moody, R.T.J. & Gardner-Thorpe,C. ut clarius tradi non possint. Ejusdem de animantibus (eds). 2013. A History of Geology and Medicine. Geo- subterraneis liber ... Cum indicibus diversis. logical Society of London, Special Publication, 375, H. Froben & N. Bischoff, Basle. http://sp.lyellcollection.org/content/375/1 Bergman, B.P. 2016. Lead, isotopes and ice: a deadly leg- Erman, A. 1901. Zauberspru¨che fu¨r Mutter und Kind. Aus acy revealed. In: Duffin, C.J., Gardner-Thorpe,C. dem Papyrus 3027 des Berliner Museums. Abhandlun- & Moody, R.T.J. (eds) Geology and Medicine: Histor- gen der Ko¨niglich Preussischen Akademie der Wissen- ical Connections. Geological Society, London, Special schaften zu Berlin, 1901, 1–52. Publications, 452. First published online December 19, Gessner, C. 1565. De Rerum Fossilium Lapidum et Gem- 2016, https://doi.org/10.1144/SP452.2 marum maxime`, figures & similitudinibus Liber: non Blaen, T. 2016. ‘Not used to be worn as a Jewel’: the solu`m Medicis, sed omnibus rerum Naturae ac Philolo- wearing of precious stones in early modern England – giae studiosis, utilis & iuncundus futurus. Jacobus Ges- ornaments or medicine? In : Duffin, C.J., Gardner- nerus, Tiguri. Thorpe,C.&Moody, R.T.J. (eds) Geology and Med- Hoch, E. 2017. Earth science as a philosophical back- icine: Historical Connections. Geological Society, ground to medicine: an essay based on the autobiogra- London, Special Publications, 452. First published phy of Dr Otto Sperling (1602–81). In: Duffin, C.J., online December 22, 2016, https://doi.org/10.1144/ Gardner-Thorpe,C.&Moody, R.T.J. (eds) Geology SP452.10 and Medicine: Historical Connections. Geological Boodt, A.B.De. 1609. Gemmarum et lapidum Historia, Society, London, Special Publications, 452. First pub- Qua non solum ortus, natura, vis & precium, sed lished online April 10, 2017, https://doi.org/10.1144/ etiam modus quo ex iis olea, salia, tincturae, essentiae, SP452.18 arcana & magisteria arte chymica confici possint, Liston, J.J. & Alcala´, L. 2017. The obstetrician, the ostenditur. Typis Wechelianis, apud Claudium Mar- surgeon and the premature birth of the world’s first nium & heredes Ioannis Aubrii, Hannoviae. dinosaur: William Hunter and James Parkinson. In: Buffetaut, E. 2016. From giant birds to X-rays: Victor Duffin, C.J., Gardner-Thorpe,C.&Moody, Lemoine (1837–97), physician and palaeontologist. R.T.J. (eds) Geology and Medicine: Historical Con- In: Duffin, C.J., Gardner-Thorpe,C.&Moody, nections. Geological Society, London, Special Publi- R.T.J. (eds) Geology and Medicine: Historical Con- cations, 452. First published online January 18, 2017, nections. Geological Society, London, Special Publi- https://doi.org/10.1144/SP452.7 cations, 452. First published online December 19, Macgregor, A. 2013. Medicinal terra sigillata: a histori- 2016, https://doi.org/10.1144/SP452.3 cal, geographical and typological review. In: Duffin, Campbell Thompson, R. 1936. A Dictionary of Assyrian C.J., Moody, R.T.J. & Gardner-Thorpe, C. (eds) A Chemistry and Geology. Clarendon Press, Oxford. History of Geology and Medicine. Geological Society, Carrasco,J.&Duffin, C.J. 2017. Alectorius: a parasym- London, Special Publications, 375, 113–136, https:// pathomimetic stone? In: Duffin, C.J., Gardner- doi.org/10.1144/SP375.1 Thorpe,C.&Moody, R.T.J. (eds) Geology and Med- Mather, J.D. & Duffin, C.J. 2016. Nathaniel Hodges and icine: Historical Connections. Geological Society, the purging wells of Shooter’s Hill. In: Duffin, C.J., London, Special Publications, 452. First published Gardner-Thorpe,C.&Moody, R.T.J. (eds) Geology online February 21, 2017, https://doi.org/10.1144/ and Medicine: Historical Connections. Geological SP452.15 Society, London, Special Publications, 452. First pub- Carter,T.&Spurgeon, A. 2016. Duncan and Son: lished online December 19, 2016, https://doi.org/10. changing professional boundaries in the geological 1144/SP452.4 and medical sciences in the nineteenth and twentieth Pantaloni, M., Console, F., Lorusso, L., Petti, F.M., centuries. In: Duffin, C.J., Gardner-Thorpe,C.& Franchini, A.F., Porro,A.&Romano, M. 2017. Moody, R.T.J. (eds) Geology and Medicine: Histori- Italian physicians’ contribution to geosciences. In: cal Connections. Geological Society, London, Special Duffin, C.J., Gardner-Thorpe,C.&Moody, Publications, 452. First published online December 19, R.T.J. (eds) Geology and Medicine: Historical Con- 2016, https://doi.org/10.1144/SP452.8 nections. Geological Society, London, Special Publi- Duffin, C.J. 2013. Lithotherapeutical research sources cations, 452. First published online March 22, 2017, from antiquity to the mid-eighteenth century. In: Duf- https://doi.org/10.1144/SP452.17 fin, C.J., Moody, R.T.J. & Gardner-Thorpe,C. Photos-Jones, E., Edwards, C., Ha¨ner, F., Lawton, L., (eds) A History of Geology and Medicine. Geological Keane, C., Leanord,A.&Perdikatsis, V. 2017.

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Archaeological medicinal earths as antibacterial venenorum’. In: Duffin, C.J., Gardner-Thorpe,C. agents: the case of the Basel Lemnian sphragides. In: & Moody, R.T.J. (eds) Geology and Medicine: Histor- Duffin, C.J., Gardner-Thorpe,C.&Moody, ical Connections. Geological Society, London, Special R.T.J. (eds) Geology and Medicine: Historical Con- Publications, 452. First published online February 2, nections. Geological Society, London, Special Publi- 2017, https://doi.org/10.1144/SP452.12 cations, 452. First published online February 2, 2017, Sameiro Barroso, M.do. 2016. Coral in Petrus Hispanus’ https://doi.org/10.1144/SP452.6 ‘Treasury of the Poor’. In: Duffin, C.J., Gardner- Podgorny, I. 2017. The name is the message: eagle-stones Thorpe,C.&Moody, R.T.J. (eds) Geology and Med- and materia medica in South America. In: Duffin, icine: Historical Connections. Geological Society, C.J., Gardner-Thorpe,C.&Moody, R.T.J. (eds) London, Special Publications, 452. First published Geology and Medicine: Historical Connections. Geo- online December 22, 2016, https://doi.org/10.1144/ logical Society, London, Special Publications, 452. SP452.11 First published online February 27, 2017, https://doi. Scully, T. 1995. The Art of Cookery in the Middle Ages. org/10.1144/SP452.14 The Boydell Press, Woodridge. Porro, A., Franchini, A.F., Falconi, B., Galimberti, Steno, N. 1667. Elementorum myologiae specimen, seu P.M. & Lorusso, L. 2016. Water and the city of musculi descriptio geometrica. Cui accedunt canis Milan at the end of the nineteenth century. In: Duffin, carchariae dissectum caput, et dissectus piscis ex C.J., Gardner-Thorpe,C.&Moody, R.T.J. (eds) canum genere. [Joseph Cocchini], Florence. Geology and Medicine: Historical Connections. Geo- Steno, N. 1669. De solido intra solidum naturaliter con- logical Society, London, Special Publications, 452. tento dissertationis prodromus. [Jacobum Moukee], First published online December 22, 2016, https:// Florence. doi.org/10.1144/SP452.9 Stevens, J. 1723. The History of the Antient Abbeys, Mon- Pymm, R. 2016. ‘Serpent stones’: myth and medical appli- asteries, Hospitals, Cathedrals and Collegiate cation. In: Duffin, C.J., Gardner-Thorpe,C.& Churches. Being Two Additional Volumes to Sir Wil- Moody, R.T.J. (eds) Geology and Medicine: Histori- liam Dugdale’s Monasticon Anglicanum. Volume II. cal Connections. Geological Society, London, Special Jos. Smith, Tho. Taylor, Luke Stokoe, John Senex, Publications, 452. First published online December 19, W. Taylor, T. Meighan, J. Batley, And. Johnston, 2016, https://doi.org/10.1144/SP452.1 W. Bray, R. King, and Tho. Cox, London. Pymm, R. 2017. ‘A charm to impose on the vulgar’: the Torra de Arana,E.,Hombrı´a Tortajada,A.&Domingo medicinal and magical applications of the snakestone Pe´rez, T. 1985. Los Tapices de la Seo de Zaragoza.La bead within the British Isles. In: Duffin, C.J., Caja de Ahorros de la Inmaculada, Aragon. Gardner-Thorpe,C.&Moody, R.T.J. (eds) Geology Vai, G.B. & Caldwell, W.G.E. (eds) 2006. The Origins and Medicine: Historical Connections. Geological of Geology in Italy. Geological Society of America, Society, London, Special Publications, 452. First pub- Special Papers, 411. lished online February 2, 2017, https://doi.org/10. Vai, G.B. & Cavazza, W.G.E. 2006. Ulisse Aldrovandi 1144/SP452.13 and the origin of geology and science. In: Vai, G.B. Retsas, S. 2016. Geotherapeutics: the medicinal use of & Caldwell, W.G.E. (eds) The Origins of Geology earths, minerals and metals fromantiquityto the twenty- in Italy. Geological Society of America, Special first century. In: Duffin, C.J., Gardner-Thorpe,C.& Papers, 411, 43–63. Moody, R.T.J. (eds) Geology and Medicine: Historical Vesalius, A. 1543. De Humani Corporis Fabrica Libri Connections. Geological Society, London, Special Septem. [ex officina Ioannis Oporini], Basiliae. Publications, 452. First published online December Warner, R. 1791. Antiquitates Culinariae or Curious 20, 2016, https://doi.org/10.1144/SP452.5 Tracts Relating to the Culinary Affairs of the Old Sabate´ Casellas,F.&Torres Gallardo, B. 2017. English, With a Preliminary Discourse, Notes and Pau Estorch Sique´s (1805–71) and his ‘magnes Illustrations. R. Blamire, London.

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