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Lithospermum officinale, gromwell
Summary
Based on no evidence other than its appearance, this hepatotoxic plant was used since Roman times to break up stones in the kidneys or gall bladder.
Family
Boraginaceae
Meaning of the Name
Lithospermum
From the Greek, ‘lithos’, ‘a stone’ or, more particularly, ‘small
stone’ with the Latin, ‘sperm’, ‘seed’. The small seeds were thought
to look like stones leading to the plant’s medicinal use to treat
gall and kidney stones.
officinale
From the Latin for workshop or office and, thus, given to the
species of a plant which was sold in shops or pharmacies and, by
extension, a useful plant.
Sources - Pliny
Gaius Plinius Secundus, Pliny the Elder, was born in 23AD in
northern Italy and followed a career in the army which took him to
Germany, Gaul, Africa and Spain.
He had an insatiable thirst for knowledge including having slaves
read to him during meals so that no chance was missed to acquire
more knowledge. When his travels ended, he began writing. Now, he
would be read to constantly leaving him free to make notes and
summarise what he was hearing as it was being read.
He wrote seven books but only his ‘Natural History’ survives which
contains thirty seven volumes covering astronomy, geography, zoology,
botany, medicine, pharmacy, chemistry, minerals, metals, art and
architecture.
As one of the few written records to survive from Rome, the ‘Natural
History’ is, obviously, of great value but it has to be said that
some of the material is contradictory and a lot of it is bizarre.
He died on 24th August 79AD as a result of staying too long
observing the eruption of Vesuvius which swamped Pompeii.
Lithospermum officinale, gromwell
Common Names and Synonyms
gromwell, grey millet
How Poisonous, How Harmful?
Contains hepatotoxic pyrrolizidine alkaloids which do damage to the liver and can cause internal bleeding.
Not a harmful plant, in modern times, but its widespread use based on the Doctrine of Signatures to deal with kidney stones or gallstones may have caused liver problems from Roman times.
Incidents
No reported incidents.
Folklore and Facts
According to Pliny, it looks as though the ‘jeweller’s art had
arranged gleaming white pearls symmetrically among the leaves’.
These stone like seeds mean it is ‘indisputable’ that it ‘breaks up
and brings away stone’.
‘Among all plants nothing is more wonderful than Lithospermum’.
The fruits look like ‘gleaming white pearls symmetrically among the
leaves’. It clears stones and ‘its very appearance.....[means]
people can become aware of this property’.
It is somewhat depressing to find that there are still sites advocating the use of gromwell as a treatment for stones though most of them do not mention that this use is based on the Doctrine of Signatures.
