CAMBOGIA. 



83 



GUTTIFER^. 



CAMBOGIA. 



Gummi Gambogia, Gummi Gutti ; Gamboge ; F. Gomme Gutte ; 



G. Gutti, Guntimigutt. 



Botanical Origin 



^ 



cellata, a dioecious tree/ with handsome laurel-like folliage and small 

 yellow flowers, found in Camboja, Siam (province of Chantibun and the 

 islands on the east coast of the gulf of Siam), and in the southern parts 

 of Cochin China. It was introduced about thirty years ago into 

 Singapore where several specimens are still thriving (1873) on the 

 estate of Dr. Jamie, The finest is now a tree of 20 feet high, with a 



Mo 



diameter 



The typical form of this tree having sessile male 



flowers grows in moist forests of Southern India and Ceylon, and is 

 capable of affording good gamboge. 



G' pictoria Roxb., a large tree of Southern India, produces a sort of 

 gamboge found by Christian (1846) essentially the same as that of 

 oiam. It has been examined more recently by Broughton (1871) who 

 states it to be quite equal to that of G. Morella. We have also been 

 unable to find any difference between the product of G. pictoria as sent 

 irom Ceylon and common gamboge, Garcinia pictoria moreover is 

 thought by Sir Jos. Hooker to aijree with G. Morella. 



History— The Chinese had intercourse with Camboja as early as 

 the time of th e Sung dynasty (a.d. 970—1127); and a Chinese traveller 

 who visited the latter country in 1295-97, describes gamboge and the 

 jiiethod of obtaining it by incisions in the stem of the tree.^ The cele- 

 wated Chinese herbal Pun-tsao, written towards the close of the 16th 

 century, mentions gamboge (Tang-liivang) and gives a rude figure of 

 the tree. The drug is regarded by the Chinese as poisonous, and is 

 ^cai-cely employed except as a pigment. 



Ihe first notice of the occurrence of gamboge in Europe is in 

 ^ntings of Clusius^ who describes a specimen brought from Chin 



the 



., o -...oxL.^ wiiu uusciiuea a, specimen DrougUD irom wiina by 



jne Dutch Admiral, Jacob van Neck, and given to him in 1603, under 



•le name of Ghittaiemou.* It appears that shortly after this time it 



2pgan to be employed in medicine in Europe, for in 1611, Michael 



jJ^'i'Jen, a physician of Bamberg, made use of it as he stated in 1613.' 



^ termed the drug a "novum gummi purgans," or also, Gummi de 



h sl'rf H'^n named Garcinia Hanhuryi 

 ,^.y'\y^V^ Hooker [Journ. of the Lhi- 



«>y U'm?;+! w' ^^'h ^•^•^)> b"t I presume 

 «>ot W • ^'^""^ ^^^iel Hanbury would 

 »• » d^sfr'i.''*^^^^'^ the plant under notice 

 % Jt *^ ^V^^-^^^. Consult also Bent- 

 r..K^^ Tnmen, M^d. Plants, part 30. 



i'« NoufZ^ Oamboge in Abel-Remu- 

 Tbe Chin 



odati 



ese traveller calls the ex- 



ion ;r.V,« I ^^^^^^i«^ t;aiis tne ex- 

 ^'^ng-hwang which ia the name 



for turme.rk, but his description is unmis- 



takeable. 



3 Exotica (1605) 82. 



* Dr. R. Rost is of opinion that this word 

 is derived from the Malay gatdh, gum, and 

 the Javanese;rtm?/3ignifyingmedicinal, such 



mixing of the two languages being of com- 

 mon occurrence. 



^ De nova gummi purganfe, Lipsise, 1614. 

 We have only seen the second edition pub- 

 lished at Leiden in 1625, its preface dating 

 from 1613. 



