Monochrome painting of the longan (longyan, Dimocarpus longan) fromDiannan bencao tushuo(The Illustrated Yunnan Pharmacopoeia).Diannan bencao tushuowas compiled by the Ming (1368-1644) writer Lan Mao in the 14th-15th century. The word 'Dian' in the title refers to the Yunnan region, in the Southwest of China. It provides a record of the plants and other substances commonly used for medicinal purposes in Yunnan in the Ming period. Most of the entries are illustrated with ink and wash paintings. This manuscript copy was executed in 1773 (38th year of the Qianlong reign period of the Qing dynasty, Gui Si year) by Zhu Jingyang.In the text, Lan Mao states: The longyan has the medicinal properties of nourishing the blood and calming the mind, enhancing the intellect, astringing perspiration, dispelling parasitic toxins (gudu), removing malign Qi (xieqi)from the five viscera, and invigorating the spleen. It is used to treat fright palpitations and fearful throbbing (jingji zhengzhong), impaired memory and insomnia, insufficiency-overexertion (xulao), frailty and emaciation etc. The powdered, calcined peel is applied externally to treat wounds that fail at length to heal. The kernel, ground to a powder and appled externally, is used to treat scrofula (luoli) and goitre.
Ink drawing