P^O'NIA ED'ULIS FESTrVA. 
HANDSOME EDIBLE P^ONY. 
Class. Order. 
POLYANDRIA. DIGYNIA. 
Natural Order. 
RANUNCULACEAS. 
Raised in 
Height 
Flowers in 
Duration 
Raised 
Belgium ? 
2| feet. 
July. 
Perennial. 
in 1838 
No. 905. 
The Greeks adopted the name Paeonia for a 
plant, in honour of one of their eminent fabulous 
personages. We say fabulous, because the ancient 
Greek poets invented very many of their heroes of 
verse ; it should, however, be remembered that 
they usually founded the character of these heroes 
on some original or type, with which they took a 
poet’s unlimited licence, and exaggerated the deeds 
of their original to make them the achievements of 
either angels of darkness or angels of light, as suited 
best their purpose. Paeon was represented as a 
physician, in the Trojan War, and as curing even 
the very Gods of their wounds. Hence physicians 
were sometimes called Paeonii, and medicinal herbs 
Paeoniae herbae. 
The common Paeony of our gardens, — the 
Paeony officinalis, was formerly a plant of the Lon- 
don Pharmacopoea, and its roots prescribed in 
epiliptic diseases ; but it has latterly been omitted, 
as of little value. 
It has ever been our endeavour to have the draw- 
ings for the Botanic Garden made with the utmost 
fidelity, from living plants; and never to suffer ex- 
227. 
