The treatment notes written by Forman, Napier, and their associates were formulaic and often heavily abbreviated. As a result, they can be tricky to interpret but become much easier with a key. Below are listed a few of the symbols, shortened forms, unfamiliar spellings, and typical terms encountered in these notes. It should be emphasised that this is by no means a comprehensive list; nor are the substances and treatments below necessarily those most commonly recorded. They should, however, provide a useful guide to some of the frequently occurring treatments encountered in the casebooks, and illustrate the sorts of medicaments that can be found in the entries. For a discussion of the sorts of treatment found in the casebooks see What treatments did they prescribe?, and for a few examples of treatments drawn from cases and from the notes in the casebooks see Selected treatments.
Meanings | |
---|---|
♁ | antimony |
♀ | copper (when used in conjunction with a quantity, such as ‘℥j’, one ounce) |
☿ vitæ | mercury vitæ; mercury of life, also known as powder of algaroth (a purgative) |
℥ | ounces |
℈ | scruples |
ʒ | drachms, or drams |
alhand | alhandal; a purgative extract from colocynth |
an., ana | of each (i.e. the same quantity of each ingredient) |
aq calcis | aqua calcis; lime water |
aqua celestis | heavenly water |
aqua fumar | aqua fumariæ; fumitory water |
aqua hyp | aqua hypericum; water of St John’s wort |
Auru[m] potab | Aurum potabile; potable gold |
bened | benedicta laxativa; blessed laxative (according to Robert Hooper’s Lexicon Medicum, 1829, this is a ‘compound of turbeth, scammony, and spurges, with some warm aromatics’) |
cardus water | a medicinal water made from Carduus Benedictus (now Cnicus Benedictus), blessed thistle |
cephalic | a vein (a bloodletting instruction) |
clyster | enema |
cocl. | coclear; spoonful (a quantity) |
confect Alkermes | confectio alchermes (a tonic) |
cowslops | cowslips |
crocus metall | crocus metallorum; yellow powder derived from antimony |
decoct. | decoction |
decoc St Iohnworte | decoction of St John’s wort |
diacarth. | diacarthamum |
diaphaenic | diaphoenicum; confection of dates |
diaturb | diaturbith |
dieta purgativa | purgative diet |
dietar. phisick | dietary physic |
elect ros. | electuarium rosarum; electuary of roses |
elect rosar[um] | electuarium rosarum; electuary of roses |
empl. | emplastrum; plaster |
emplastrum Apostolicum | Apostolic plaster (a compound medicine) |
flos vng | flos unguentorum; the flower of ointments |
glister | clyster (enema) |
gr: 3. | grains 3; a quantity |
gut. 3 | guttae 3; 3 drops (a quantity) |
hamec | confection of Hamech |
hepatica | a vein (a bloodletting instruction) |
Iecoraria, iecoraria | a vein (a bloodletting instruction) |
Ieralog | Ieralogadii; Hiera Logadii, Hiera of Logadius (a medicine compounded of aloes and spices) |
Isop | hyssop |
Iunip[er] | juniper (note that this is often written by Napier so as to look like ‘Imp[er]’) |
laudan | laudanum |
lenitive potions | softening or soothing potions, possibly laxative |
litle tabul. | a little tabulat; a little tablet |
london triacle | London treacle, i.e. theriac |
losenges | a pill for dissolving in the mouth |
mediana | a vein (a bloodletting instruction) |
mine ceph. | mine cephalicam; let blood from the cephalic vein |
mine hepaticam | let blood from the hepatic vein |
mine sang. | mine sanguinem; let blood |
mitte sanguine[m] | let blood |
oleu[m] spicæ | oil of aspic |
oyle of spike | oil of aspic |
oximell | oximel; a medicinal preparation |
p | pulvis; powder |
p holland | pulvis hollandi; pulvis Radulphi Hollandi; Holland Powder |
p sctus | pulvis sanctus; Brasavola |
pil. | pillula(e/s); pill(s) |
pill lucis | pillulae lucis; pills of light (for eyesight) |
piony | peony |
poud of holl | pouder of holland; Holland Powder |
preservative | a medicine intended to prevent something |
pul holland | pulvis hollandi; Holland Powder |
pul sanctus | pulvis sanctus; Brasavola |
pultish | poultice |
℞ | Recipe; take (this usually, but does not always, indicate a recipe; some scribes habitually use this when writing out any medicine to be taken, whether or not they are providing a detailed recipe for it. Note also that ℞ in some contexts refers to the angel Raphael, including in some entries in which it appears that Napier was citing Raphael as the source of a suggested treatment. It also occasionally occurs in financial notes, meaning ‘received’) |
R ♂ | Regulus of iron |
℞ ♂ | Regulus of iron |
Reg ♂ | Regulus of iron |
Regulus ♁ | Regulus of antimony |
repercussive | a medicine intended to force humours away from a part of the body |
rosa solis | sundew (a plant) |
S | sigil; sometimes with the symbol of a planet or metal, as in ‘S ♃’, meaning a sigil made from tin and/or bearing an image associated with Jupiter, or ‘S ☉’, a sigil made from gold and/or bearing an image associated with the sun |
saph. | saphena; a vein (a bloodletting instruction) |
sarsap. | sarsaparilla |
sc. | scammony |
scam. | scammony |
sirup | syrup |
snesing pouder | sneezing powder |
st. | stibium; antimony |
stib. | stibium; antimony |
sub lingua | below the tongue (a bloodletting instruction) |
suppositor. | suppository |
syr. | syrupus; syrup |
syr. absynth. | syrupus absynthii; syrup of wormwood |
tab. 4d | tabulatum 4d; a tablet of the weight of 4d (the amount varies; ‘ob’ is short for ‘obolus’, halfpenny; sometimes given in full as e.g. ‘the weight of 2d’) |
tab mag weighing 6d | tabulatum magnum weighing 6d |
tabulatum stibiatum | tablet of antimony |
teriac | theriac (a complex medicine) |
terra sigil[lata] | clay tablet bearing little images |
theriac | a complex medicine |
vena epatica | the hepatic vein (a bloodletting instruction) |
venice turpent | venice turpentine; turpentine from the larch tree |
vinu[m] stib. | vinum stibiatum; wine of antimony |
vng. | unguentum; ointment |
vng. albu[m] | unguentum album; white ointment |
vng. hyru[n]d | unguentum hyrundineum; ointment of swallows |
vnguentu[m] Tobacco | unguent of tobacco |