Tribe cj. 
The Theater of Tlants. 
Cha 
p *3- 
1 . rftraflylii florcluUo: 
The yellow Diftaffe Thifll 
- 
Chai; hi. 
AtraBjlis. The Diftaffe Thiftle. 
a « H is sAtraViyltsao Diftaffe Thiftle is accounted a wilde kindc of Cnicus. The forts whereof I have fee 
forth in this Booke here before, and the Cardans Bencdtlhss Blcffed Thiftle inmyjformer Booke ac- 
counted another fort of this AtraBjlis, which I (hall not not neede to dclcribe againe; the other 
forts I fhall fhew you here. 
3 ^- j. AtraBylis fiorc lutto . The yellow Diftaffe Thiftle. 
This wilde baftard Saffron or Diftaffe Thiftleffor fo ir may by both names fitly be called) hath the lower leaves 
fnmewbat Ions and narrow, much cut in on the edges, very hairy, or as it were a little hoary, and’not prickly 
while rtiev are youne and before the ftalke rifeth, but then are harder and more prickly, and ftrll the higher, the 
more fharpe fetwith prickles, which riling to be three or f oure foote high, are rough, round, and branched, from 
the middle upwards,& hath at the top of every branch a few fmaller,but more prickly leaves,under every prii kly 
head which from the middle of them flroote forth a few pale yellow threads, which are the flowers, and being 
n f in t[iem divers blackilh hard feeds fome what bigger than thofc of the Garden Cnicos or baftar d Saffron, 
rnd letter than thofe of Cnicus alter Cltifij lying in downe, but nothing fo much as in it: the roote is whitifh and 
wnndrlv nerifhinf every yeare after feede time: the leaves hereof before they grow hard and old being gent- 
lv broken but not bru.fed, will yeelda reddifhor bloody juyee. 
1 t AtraBy/isflorepurpureo. Purple Diftaffe Thiftle. 
This Thiftle differeth from the laft in the flower, which is of a 
nnrplifh red colour, and in the leaves that they are not hairy or hoary, 
and in the ftalke that it riferh fcldome fo high, in all other things it is 
fo like it,yea even in the bloudy, juyee alfo,that one would fay it were 
the very lame. _ . 
3. Atratfyfaptirpurtd Cprta. 
The purple Diftaffe Thiftle of Cyprus. 
This Thiftle that Anguilara fetreth forth, and Ltigdanen/is after him 
hath leaves like unto the manured Cnicus, or baftard Saffron, but leT- 
fer and fomewhat ruggedor crumpled, from among which rifeth up 
a ftalke,bearing a Thiftle-like head at the toppe, from whence fpring ' 
{lender branches, bare or w ithout leaves, halfe a roote high or more, 
having on each of them a fmall prickly head, with a purple flower in 
the middle (like unto an Avemone ,as they fay,buthow truly I cannot 
tell ) but in other places enclining to. yellow : the whole ftalke and 
branches rife to a cubits height, and have white feede like unto Cm- 
cm q[ baftard Saffron, 
The Place. 
Clufitss faith he found the firft in the come fields of Sevill and Cordo¬ 
ba in Spaine: the lecondand third grow in many countries, as about 
U Hompelier, and Narbone in France, in Italy,Greece,&c. the laft is faid 
by Aneuilara to be found in the He of Cyprut, and Lugduncnfis faith it 
is alfo found in Frame, but iomewhat differing in the colour of the , 
flower. 
The Time. 
They flower towards the end of Summer, and the feede ripeneth in 
the end of Augujl, yet the laft doth flower and feede loonet than the 
other forts. 
The Names . 
The Grceke call the manured kinde j oiyjit Cnicus, and fo doe the La- 
tines alfo, and C ncCM offome, it is thought ’em rZmfamod mordere 
tun pttngere Jignifieat, vel i-mts me^S quod punqendo pruriqinem 
excitat quod de Jylvejlri potius quam de fattvo, did potefl • or 
rather from the colour of the flowers, Cam asms exponatur crocens 
■vet ratilm ■. the Arabians call it Kortam, from whence the names 
Cartbamas is deduced, whereby it is knowne in the Apothecaries fhoppes, hereof there is two principal! kinds,' 
the manured or tame, and the wilde, as Thofcorides ,Theephraftus. and Pliny, from them doefet downe'; ofthc 
wilde kinde there are two forts recorded by Thecphrajhn. and 7 liny from him, the former more upright, and like 
unto the manured kinde, which of divers is taken to be AtraBylis, the other trailing on the ground, and more 
like a Sowthiftlc, which of all in generall is taken to be our Cardans benediBus, unto the former Then. 
pirafi?njgiveth"a blackeand a greater fruit, and more bitter than the other: but Flint unto his former giveth a 
white grear and bitter feede, which becaufe that Pliny faith the former Cnicus fylveflris was called AtraUylis, 
hath bred much controverfie among many worthy Writers, fome affirming the Cnicus fylveflris prior to be Atra- 
BylU, and others refuting that opinion, becaufe that Tbeopbraftus fpeaketh diftinftly ofthem both in feverall pla¬ 
ces: but notwithftanding, that allegation, which is the fame that Mattbiolus ulech, who fo fhall heedfuliy ob- 
fervethefaid places in Tbeophraflus ( GuiUndinus in Fapyre, giving this note, that there are many things 
twife fpoken of ill him, by iundry names) fhall certainely findc that the AtraUylis here fet downe, 
both is the fame AtraBylis with him and Diofcorides, and the Cnicm fylveflris prior of Tbeophraflus, and 
Pliny notwithftanding, the divers relation of the feede, as is'fhewed before: for there never could be 5 
heard of any that could fhew any Cnicus fylveflris with a white feede; and our AtraBylis doth fo fitly anfwer in . 
aft 
