erset^93 and Gloucestershire.^94 As an astringent it has found favour for remov-
ing wrinkles (East Riding of Yorkshire^95 ) and suntan and freckles (unlocal-
ised).^96 More drastic has been its role as an acrid spring purgative and kidney
stimulant in the Isle of Man^97 and for treating cancer of the liver in Suf-
folk^98 —it was formerly much used for cancer in Russia. In Classical medicine,
however, the main use of the latex seems to have been as an eye ointment, in
deference to a myth that female swallows restored the sight of their young
with it (whence the subsidiary name ‘swallow-wort’). In unskilled hands that
must always have been most dangerous, yet records from areas as widely sep-
arate as Sutherland,^99 Norfolk^100 and especially Devon^101 and Cornwall^102
(whence ‘kenning herb’ there) point to a once-frequent adherence to that
belief; in Glamorgan, indeed, it has even been used for removing a cataract
(one Welsh name of the plant is llym llygaid,‘sharp eyes’).^103 William Wither-
ing noted that, when diluted with milk, the juice does indeed consume the
white opaque spots on the eye familiarly known as kennings and opined,
‘there is no doubt but a medicine of such activity will one day be converted to
more important purposes.’^104
The combination of yellow flowers and yellow juice has predictably
brought greater celandine some currency as a jaundice cure as well. Though
less popular than barberry (Berberis vulgaris), it has seemingly had quite a fol-
lowing for that even so, with records from the Isle of Wight,^105 Norfolk^106
and Berwickshire^107 as far as Britain is concerned.
Ireland can match that last use with records from Cavan,^108 Westmeath^109
and Cork.^110 In Westmeath it has additionally been used for eczema,^111 but
otherwise applications of the plant feature noticeably more scantily than in
Britain, probably reflecting a much slighter presence historically in that other
island.
Fumariaceae
Fumaria Linnaeus
fumitory
temperate Asia, North Africa, Macaronesia; introduced into North
and South America, Australasia
Fumaria was an astringent mainly in use for cosmetic purposes. Made into an
infusion and mixed with milk and/or water, it had a high reputation in cer-
tain English country areas,^112 including Wiltshire,^113 Norfolk^114 and Suf-
folk,^115 for clearing the complexion of blemishes and cleansing the skin. A
80 Chelidonium majus