SC - Marshmallows

[Marilyn Traber]

marshmallow is a demulcent, meaning it softens up and slimes, which is used for
sore throats and certain forms of upset stomachs, and iirc was mentioned in one
of the various healing scrolls that the egyptians were noted for. It was also
used as a candy according to the doc. I figure they would have some sort of
evidence to show them as a candy as well. We do know they were available and
exceedingly popular as a candy in period, enough so to make a fake version for
those who couldnt afford the real thing. Whether or not it could have also been
used wither topically or as a clyster/suppository is another matter. i really
dont thing it woul dbe untoward to make the little critters and use them for all
3 uses, though the way they were made [sap, not the replacement sygar and flavor
ones] is found in various books, including tacitum sanitas as well. there are
other demulcents still in use today, slippery elm for example that are ysed
internally and topically, and in candy as well [i used to get a brand of
horehound drops with it in that was by a company who put the same ones out with
a menthol-eucalyptus medicated version. the advertising ploy was it was a candy
not a med for those who liked the taste of the horehound. I hate the things
unless i am really sick and have a stuffy nose otherwise they are too strong to
nosh on.


> Are you absolutely sure and are they absolutely sure that these
> were even for *eating*? The description you give sounds quite a
> bit like a paste that was used to treat pain. Gerard has tons of
> recipes for plasters, ointments, unguents, and balms that involved
> these same ingredients. The chapter on Marsh-mallow in his "Herbal
> or General History of Plants" describes the addition of the plants
> musilage to all oils, ointments, and plasters. And the last two
> of those items were often made with flours of varying kinds.
>
> jasmine, jasmine at infoengine.com



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