I'm still trying to find evidence to tie the dandelion to the Taraskon - dragon of Provence and northern Spain. I could be wrong, but I don't think so at this moment.
The scientific name of dandelion is Taraxacum officinale. I gather that Latin name translates to Bitter Herb of the apothecary (officinales = of the pharmacy/apothecary.) Also, the most ancient herbals, for example Avincenna's herbal, say that the dandelion is similar to chicory, used for insomnia. That suggests a sedative to me... Maybe, but I can't find any books that list dandelion used like opium.
But I did find a chemical analysis of the dandelion which listed the two chemicals found in wild lettuce. We have trip reports from people who experimented with wild lettuce, ok so, dandelion has 2 chemicals that might make a person stoned. It seems that doctors used wild lettuce (in the 1800's?) when they could not get opium.
Some guy wrote that the Tarascon dragon is linked to a city named Taragon in Spain. It was in French Wikipedia. I'm keeping careful notes, which I can upload later if I find something worthwhile. I searched a whole lot but found nothing directly connecting the dragon to the dandelion. So, then I looked up the kitchen herb, tarragon, just in case I had the wrong plant or something. Trying to keep an open mind even if I'm wrong.
Looking at the list of chemicals found in tarragon, I'm impressed. What if we gathered some dandelion latex and put it together with some essential oil of tarragon? This combination reminds me of absinthe. I remember reading that some crazy guys managed to make an ayahuasca (drug mixture) from 3 local plants in Italy. Wondering what herbalism was known in ancient times? They would have had access to plants that have gone extinct. How did they ever learn which plants were safe to eat and which are poison?
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The scientific name of dandelion is Taraxacum officinale. I gather that Latin name translates to Bitter Herb of the apothecary (officinales = of the pharmacy/apothecary.) Also, the most ancient herbals, for example Avincenna's herbal, say that the dandelion is similar to chicory, used for insomnia. That suggests a sedative to me... Maybe, but I can't find any books that list dandelion used like opium.
But I did find a chemical analysis of the dandelion which listed the two chemicals found in wild lettuce. We have trip reports from people who experimented with wild lettuce, ok so, dandelion has 2 chemicals that might make a person stoned. It seems that doctors used wild lettuce (in the 1800's?) when they could not get opium.
Some guy wrote that the Tarascon dragon is linked to a city named Taragon in Spain. It was in French Wikipedia. I'm keeping careful notes, which I can upload later if I find something worthwhile. I searched a whole lot but found nothing directly connecting the dragon to the dandelion. So, then I looked up the kitchen herb, tarragon, just in case I had the wrong plant or something. Trying to keep an open mind even if I'm wrong.
Looking at the list of chemicals found in tarragon, I'm impressed. What if we gathered some dandelion latex and put it together with some essential oil of tarragon? This combination reminds me of absinthe. I remember reading that some crazy guys managed to make an ayahuasca (drug mixture) from 3 local plants in Italy. Wondering what herbalism was known in ancient times? They would have had access to plants that have gone extinct. How did they ever learn which plants were safe to eat and which are poison?
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