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 | Celandine (Greater) Other Names: Common Celandine. Garden Celandine
Botanical Name: Chelidonium majus (LINN.)
Family: N.O. Papaveraceae |
Description: |
At first glance, the four petals arranged in the form of a cross make it appear a member of the order Cruciferce, but it is not related to these plants, belonging to the same family as the Poppies (Papaveraceae) and has, like these flowers, a dense mass of stamens in the centre of its blossoms.
The Celandine is a herbaceous perennial. The root is thick and fleshy. The stem, which is slender, round and slightly hairy, grows from 1 1/2 to 3 feet high and is much branched; at the points where the branches are given off, it is swollen and jointed and breaks very easily.
The whole plant abounds in a bright, orange-coloured juice, which is emitted freely wherever the stems or leaves are broken. This juice stains the hands strongly and has a persistent and nauseous taste and a strong, disagreeable smell. It is acrid and a powerful irritant.
The yellowish-green leaves, which are much paler, almost greyish below, are very thin in texture, drooping immediately on gathering. They are graceful in form and slightly hairy, 6 to 12 inches long, 2 to 3 inches wide, deeply divided as far as the central rib, so as to form usually two pairs of leaflets, placed opposite to one another, with a large terminal leaflet. The margins (i.e. edges) of the leaflets are cut into by rounded teeth.
The flowers drop very quickly when picked. They are arranged at the ends of the stems in loose umbels. They blossom throughout the summer, being succeeded by narrow, long pods, containing blackish seeds. |
History: |
This plant is undoubtedly the true Celandine, having nothing in common with the Lesser Celandine except the colour of its flowers. It was a drug plant in the Middle Ages and is mentioned by Pliny, to whom we owe the tradition that it is called Chelidonium from the Greek chelidon (a swallow), because it comes into flower when the swallows arrive and fades at their departure. (The English name Celandine is merely a corruption of the Greek word.) Its acrid juice has been employed successfully in removing films from the cornea of the eye, a property which Pliny tells us was discovered by swallows, this being a double reason why the plant should be named after these birds.
Gerard says:
'the juice of the herbe is good to sharpen the sight, for it cleanseth and consumeth away slimie things that cleave about the ball of the eye and hinder the sight and especially being boiled with honey in a brasen vessell, as Dioscorides teacheth.'
It is one of the twenty-four herbs mentioned in Mercer's Herbal.
In the fourteenth century, a drink made with Celandine was supposed to be good for the blood. Clusius, the celebrated Dutch botanist, considered that the juice, dropped into small green wounds, effected rapid cure, and when dropped into the eye would take away specks and stop incipient suffusions. The old alchemists held that it was good to 'superstifle the jaundice,' because of its intense yellow colour. |
Habitat: |
| Found by old walls, on waste ground and in hedges, nearly always in the neighbourhood of human habitations. |
Constituents: |
| The alkaloids Chelidonine and Chelerythrin, the latter narcotic and poisonous, also the two nearly allied alkaloids, Homochelidonine A, and Homocheli donine B. In addition, Protopine and Sanguinarine, and a body named Chelidoxanthin, a neutral bitter principle. |
Medicinal Usage: |
Alterative, diuretic, purgative. It is used in jaundice, eczema, scrofulous diseases, etc., the infusion of 1 OZ. of the dried herb to a pint of boiling water being taken in wineglassful doses. The infusion is a cordial and greatly promotes perspiration. The addition of a few aniseeds in making a decoction of the herb in wine has been held to increase its efficacy in removing obstructions of the liver and gall.
A fluid extract is also prepared, the dose being 1/2 to 1 drachm. Eight to 10 drops of the tincture made from the whole herb, or of the fresh juice, given as a dose three times a day in sweetened water, is considered excellent for overcoming torpid conditions of the liver. In the treatment of the worst forms of scurvy it has been given with benefit.
The orange-coloured, acrid juice is commonly used fresh to cure warts, ringworm and corns, but should not be allowed to come into contact with any other part of the skin.
In milk, it is employed as an eye-lotion, to remove the white, opaque spots on the cornea. Mixed with sulphur, it was formerly used to cure the itch.
An ointment made of the roots and lard boiled together, also of the leaves and flowers, has been used with advantage for piles.
Celandine is a very popular medicine in Russia, where it is said to have proved effective in cases of cancer.
It is still used in Suffolk as a fomentation for toothache. |
Ancient Lore: |
CELANDINE(The Greater) CHELIDONIUM MAJUS
One of the best cures for the eyes. When the Sun is in Leo and the Moon in A ries make it into an oil or ointment to anoint the eyes with. The most desperate sore eyes have been cured by this only medicine; is by far better than endangering the eyes by the art of the needle?
A perennial with many tender, round, whitish-green stalks and greater joints than usual as if they were knees. The stalks are brittle and easy to break. The leaves are large, tender and broad, dark blueish-green on top and pale blueish-green underneath, and full of yellow sap.
Where to find it: By old walls, hedges and waysides and in untilled places. Once planted in a garden, especially in a shady place, it will remain there.
Flowering time: All summer long.
Astrology: A herb of the Sun and under the celestial lion.
Medicinal virtues: The herb or root boiled in white wine with a few Aniseeds and drunk will open obstructions of the liver and gall. It helpeth the yellow jaundice, the dropsy and the itch and old sores in the legs and other parts. The juice taken fasting is held to be of singular good use against the pestilence. The distilled water with a little sugar and treacle hath the same effect. Dropped into the eyes the juice cleanseth them from films and cloudiness that darken the sight, but it is best to allay the sharpness of the juice with a little breast-milk.
It causes old, filthy, corroding, creeping ulcers to heal more speedily and the juice applied to tetters, ringworms or other spreading cankers will quickly heal them too. Rubbed often on warts, it will take them away. The herb with the root bruised and bathed in Oil of Chamomile applied to the navel taketh away griping pains in the belly and bowels and all the pains of the mother. Applied to women's breasts, it stayeth the overmuch flowing of the courses.
Modern uses: This plant should not be used for self-medication and is contraindicated in pregnancy. The herb is used by professional herbalists as a cholagogue and hepatic tonic. It purifies the blood, increases urine production, but in overdosage it will purge. The fresh juice is still considered to he an effective application for corns and warts. It is used as an eye lotion to remove film on the eyes. Chewing the root relieves toothache. In treating the liver a few drops of the juice are taken in sweetened water. The infusion produces sweating. It is available in tincture or fluid extract form from herbalists. |
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