The Fabulous Illustrated History of Psychoactive Plants

202 Pages·1981·24.054 MB·English

by  Michael Starks

It has been said in truth that a picture is worth a thousand words. This belief, insofar as many
illustrations of the psychoactive plants and their use is concerned, is absolutely true. Michael Starks' The
Fabulous Illustrated History of Psychoactive Plants stands out as a superb --- and so far as I am aware
the only --- example of a pictorial review of the history of the use of psychoactive drugs. A survey of the
189 pages of illustrations, mostly from the second half of the 19th Century, puts the reader in a really
personal closeness to the sources, preparations and uses of stimulating, narcotic and other-wise
intoxicating drugs of this and, to a lesser extent, earlier periods. It is a joy to become so familiar with
what the Germans call the Genussmittel ("tool of enjoyment") through pictures critically chosen from
the literature --- many of which come from obscure or rare sources unavailable to most readers.
The book is extremely valuable since it represents a tremendous knowledge of the literature and a
critical handling of the information preserved for posterity in illustrative form. This contribution is
apprepriately dedicated to Mordecai Cubitt Cooke who, in 1860, published The Seven Sisters of Sleep,
one of the earliest popular books on psychoactive drugs. There are portraits of some of the early leaders
in the study of psychoactive drugs: Cooke, James F.W. Johnston, Carl Hartwich, Louis Lewin and
Alexander Tschirch.
Michael Starks is to be congratulated in putting together this book --- a work of love, full of historical
wealth and yet of current pertinence. I salute his dedication of this gift to the literature of psychoactive
plants.
Richard Evans Schultes, Ph.D., FMLS Jeffrey Professor of Biology & Director, Botanical Museum of
Harvard University (Emeritus)