474 
Clicmical  Materia  Medica. 
f  Aru.  Jour.  Pharm. 
\     October,  1905. 
The  list  itself  is  published  in  the  Pharmaceutische  Post  (1905,  page 
175)  and  from  it  the  following  has  been  abstracted : 
SUBSTANCES  KNOWN  TO  THE  ANCIENTS. 
Sulphur  ;  this  substance  is  mentioned  in  the  oldest  scientific  works. 
Ammonium  chloride  ;  sal  ammoniac  was  known  to  Herodotus  and 
is  said  to  have  been  discovered  in  the  neighborhood  of  a  temple 
dedicated  to  Jupiter  Ammon,  in  Libya. 
Realgar  and  sulphide  of  antimony. 
Potassium  carbonate ;  known  to  Dioscorides. 
Sodium  carbonate  ;  supposed  to  be  identical  with  potassium  car- 
bonate.   Identified  by  Duhamel  in  1736,  and  Marggraf,  1759. 
Gypsum,  lead  carbonate,  lead  oxide,  iron,  ferrous  sulphate,  alum, 
zinc  ores,  zinc  oxide,  known  as  cadmia  or  pompholix,  to  the  alchem- 
ists as  "  Lana  philosophica,"  or,  on  account  of  its  resemblance  to 
snow  flakes,  "  Nix  alba." 
Gold,  silver,  copper,  as  "  Aes  cyprium." 
Cupric  sulphate ;  known  to  the  Greeks  as  chalcanthum,  to  the 
Romans  as  atramentum  sutorium.  More  closely  described  by  Basil- 
ius  Valentinus.  Directions  for  making  were  given  by  Van  Helmont, 
1644,  and  Glauber,  1648. 
Mercury;  known  to  Aristotle. 
Vinegar,  lead  plaster,  soap ;  the  earliest  descriptions  are  found  in 
the  works  of  Pliny. 
Potassium  bitartrate  ;  in  the  crude  state  this  was  known  to  the 
Greeks  and  Romans,  to  the  latter  as  "  Faex  vini." 
Oil  of  turpentine. 
Sodium  chloride. 
[To  be  continued.'] 
