Pharmacy in Medieval Islam and the History of Drug Addiction

DRUG ADDIcTIoN, especially through the use of poppy (Papaver somniferum Linn.) and hemp (Cannabis sativa Linn.), is the main concern of this paper.Although the use of these two plants in medieval Islam was extensive, yet little has been written on this timely subject by historians of medicine and pharmacology.Consulting con- temporary original sources, it is my hope to sketch a history of their spread and consumption and the social, economic, political and medical consequences of their misuse.Other drugs of addiction," which were also in wide use then, will not be dealt with in detail.The places of origin of poppy and hemp are assumed.But it seems probable that poppy was indigenous to Asia Minor and northern Mesopotamia, Persia and India, areas where poppy is still cultivated.2There is no doubt that the ancient peoples of these regions used it as a remedy to relieve pain and induce pleasure or sleep.3From these Asian countries, the poppy was brought to Egypt during the 18th Dynasty, if not earlier.Of the two closely related varieties known there, Papaver somniferum and P. rhoeas, the last was reported to have been cultivated in the gardens of the pharaohs, represented in their ornaments, and depicted in ancient *Reeah on this paper was partially supported by a grant from the American Philosophical Society, The Penrose Fund, Grant No. 5422.1 By drug is meant any substance which by its nature and chemical structure influences the physiological function of the living organism and/or its metabolism and anatomical action.See