82 FLOWERS 



Picrocrocin is a colourless crystalline glucoside yielding by hydrolysis crocose 

 (a reducing sugar) and a terpene with an odour recalling saffron. 



Polychroite is closely related to carotin and like carotin colours concentrated 

 sulphuric acid deep blue. It has been obtained as a ruby-red, amorphous, 

 glucosidal substance yielding by hydrolysis a new red colouring matter, crocetin 

 (also called crocin), volatile oil (?) and sugar. Crocetin is acid and forms crystal- 

 line salts with ammonia, brucine, &c. Saffron apparently contains a second 

 red colouring matter, insoluble in water but soluble in alcohol. 



Substitutes, &C. The high price of the drug has naturally been, 

 even during the time of Dioscorides and Pliny, a great inducement 

 to adulteration. This has been affected in one (or more) of the follow- 

 ing three ways : 



(i) By substituting some substance for the saffron stigmas, 

 (ii) By recolouring exhausted saffron, 

 (iii) By artificially increasing the weight of genuine saffron. 



(i) Under this heading the following may be mentioned as of 

 frequent occurrence, but numerous others have from time to time 

 been observed : the long, pale coloured styles of the saffron crocus, 

 or the stamens, or portions of the perianth of the same ; calendula 

 florets coloured with methyl- orange and sold under the names of 

 feminell or Chinese safflower ; the florets of the safflower (Carthamus 

 tinctorius, Linne), an Indian composite plant, largely used as a dye and 

 often found in the cake saffron of commerce ; the slender stems and 

 roots of monocotyledonous plants. 



(ii) Artificial coloration has been effected with aniline dyes, logwood, 

 Brazil wood, the salts of dinitrocresylic acid (Victoria yellow, Victoria 

 orange), &c. Genuine saffron, when thrown on to the surface of water, 

 should slowly surround itself with a circle of yellow (not orange yellow, 

 red or pink) liquid ; it should yield but little colour to ether or 

 petroleum spirit, in which many artificial colours are readily soluble. 

 Animal charcoal almost instantaneously decolorises an infusion of 

 saffron, whereas aniline colours are much less readily removed. An 

 infusion of (H gm. of the suspected sample in 100 c.c. of water should 

 agree with a similar infusion of genuine saffron, both in depth and 

 tint of colour. A solution of chromic acid may also be used as a 

 standard for comparison ; O'l gm. of saffron should impart as deep 

 a colour to 50 c.c. of water as 0'275 gm. of chromic anhydride. 



(iii) Saffron may be artificially weighted in a variety of ways. 

 Vegetable or mineral oil, which, in addition to increasing the weight, 

 improves the appearance, may be detected by pressing the saffron 

 between thin sheets of paper ; a greasy stain indicates the presence 

 of oil. Saffron should not contain more than 12*5 per cent, of 

 moisture or yield more than 7 per cent, of ash. The presence of 

 glycerin, ammonium nitrate, and of other substances soluble in water, 

 but leaving no ash when incinerated, may be detected by ascertain- 



