BOOK XX. c. 264 



C. And now that 1 am about to leave garden 

 plants, I have appended a very famous preparation 

 from them which is used to counteract the puison of 

 venomous animals. It is carved in verse upon a 

 stone in the temple of Aesculapius in Cos. Take 

 two denarii of wild thyme, and the same of opopanax " 

 and of spignel respectively one denarius of trefoil 

 seed, of aniseed, fennel-seed. ami and parsley,'' 

 six denarii respectively, and twelve denarii of vetch 

 meal. These are ground and passed through a 

 sieve, and then kneaded witli the best wine obtain- 

 able into lozenges. each ot one victoriatus.' One 

 of these is giveii at a time mixed with three cyathi 

 of wine. King Antiochus the Great is said to have 

 used this preparation as an antidote for the poison 

 of all venomous creatures except the asp. 



' This coin, stamped with a figure of Victory, was half a 

 (ienarius in weight. 



157 



