Scarlet Oak, Medicinal Plant, 1737
A Curious Herbal, Plate 186. The scarlet oak itself was not a medicinal plant, but the pea-sized nodules made by an insect and attached to the branches of the tree produced liquid which, mixed with sugar, made a substance called "succus kermes." This was "accounted cordial, moderately binding, comforting ye heart, cheering the animal spirits, and good to prevent miscarrying." Scarlet Oak (Quercus coccinea) is a deciduous tree in the Fagaceae family. Any galls produced on the tree are strongly astringent and can be used in the treatment of hemorrhages, chronic diarrhea, and dysentery. Elizabeth Blackwell (1707-1758) was a famed Scottish illustrator and author who was best known as both the artist and engraver for the plates of "A Curious Herbal" (1737). A herbal is a book of plants, describing their appearance, their properties and how they may be used for preparing ointments and medicines. The book is notable both for its beautiful illustrations of medicinal plants and for the unusual circumstances of its creation. Blackwell undertook the project to raise money to pay her husband's debts and release him from debtor's prison. She drew, engraved, and colored the illustrations herself, mostly using plant specimens from the Chelsea Physic Garden in London. It was an artistic, scientific and commercial enterprise unprecedented for a woman of her time. Little is known of her later years. She died in 1758, at the age of 50 or 51. She remained loyal to Alexander throughout, even sharing royalties with him from the sale of additional book rights.
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