o44 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. 
They determined it to be the root of a plant named as above, which 
belongs to the Valerian family. 
It is obtained in the higher regions of the Himalayas, and is brought 
down for sale in considerable quantities, beg much esteemed by the 
people of Oriental nations generally on account of its strong fragrance. 
It is called sambal in Hindi, and balchur in Hindustani. 
18. Tue Purrre Frower (“Avos zopdupodr). 
Grislea tomentosa, Roxb. The Dhaura, Hin. 
Among Photios’s extracts from Ktesias'’ there occurs the following 
passage :—‘‘ Near the source of the Hyparkhos there grows a certain 
purple flower, which is used for dyeing purple, and is not inferior to 
the Greek sort, but even imparts a more florid hue.” 
I am inclined to recognize in this description the flowers of the 
Dhaura tree (Sanscrit, Dhatri pushpika, or Agnivala,i.e. flame of 
fire), which was named Grislea tomentosa by Roxburgh.!” 
It will be seen by reference to any of the Indian floras that the 
flowers of this wild jungle-shrub are largely used as a dye. Thus 
Brandis says they are collected in the North-west, and exported to the 
Punjab for dyeing silks; and Drury, that ‘‘in Kandeish, where the 
plant grows abundantly, they form a considerable article of commerce 
inland as a dye.” 
I have often seen baskets-full of the dried flowers exposed for sale 
at the fairs in Chutia Nagpur, together with crude shell-lac, 7. e. in 
the same general region as that in which the Hyparkhos river was 
probably situated. The petals being minute, it is the coloured sepals 
which actually afford the dye. 
19. Om oF Sesame (“EAauoy oyncdpvor). 
Sesamum indicum, Linn. Gingely Oil, Eng. Yelloo cheddie, Tamil. 
Til, Beng. 
This is one of the most valuable oil-yielding plants in India. Both 
seeds and oil are still largely exported from India, as they were, or at 
any rate the latter was, according to the Periplus,* from Barugaza (7. e. 
Bharoch), it haying been brought there from the region in the Narbada 
valley, then known as Ariake. 
It is much cultivated in India and Egypt, and has found its way 
even to the West Indies. The seed contains about forty-five per cent. 
of oil, which is, when carefully extracted, of a pale yellow colour. It 
has a sweet smell, and is one of the best substitutes for olive oil. 
lll Gf, Ancient India, by J. W. M‘Crindle, p. 22. 
U2 According to Brandis the proper name is Woodfordia floribunda, Salis. 
13 Gf. Periplus of the Erythrean Sea, by J. W. M‘Crindle, p. 17. 
a 
