A New Supplement...: Dragon's blood.

A New Supplement to the latest Pharmacopoeias of London, Edinburgh, Dublin, and Paris, Forming A Complete Dispendatory, Conspectus, and Dictionary of Medical Chemistry, Giving All the Old and New Names, Including the New French and American Medicines, and Poisons; with Symptoms, Treatment, and Tests; as Well As Herbs, Drugs, Compounds, Veterinary Drugs, With the Pharmacopoia of the Vetenary College, Nostrums, Patent Medicines, Perfumery, Paints, Varnishes, And similar articles kept in the Shops; With Their Compositions, Imitations, Adulterations, And Medicinal Uses, Being a General Book of Formulæ and Recipes For Daily Reference in the Laboratory and at the Counter.
Fourth edition, corrected, improved, and very much enlarged.
By James Rennie, M. A., Editor of the Quarterly Journal of Foreign Medicine; the Pharmacopeia Universalis; Author of a Conspectus of Prescriptions in Medicine, Surgery, and Midwifery; the Pharmacopeia Imperialis, &c. &c.
London: Baldwin and Cradock. 1837.
London: Thomas Curson Hansard, Paternoster Row.


DRAGON'S BLOOD. A vegetable gum brought from the Canary Islands, the East Indies, and America. It exudes from the Dracærna Draco chiefly when the tree is full grown; for when very young or very old the gum is in small quantity. The produce is increased by incisions. Berthollet has given an interesting account of the tree in the Ann. des Scien. Nat. for June 1828. The finest sort is in tears, or drops of an oval form; the ordinary sort is in cakes and masses, containing many impurities. The fine sort also is very light, friable, and of a beautiful deep crimson colour. Used to colour varnishes and lackers in the arts, and by farriers for the disease called red water, but without effect.

Incompatible with white lead, and is darkened by exposure to light, and deepened incolour by impure air. (FIELD.)

Adulterated with cheaper gums and resins, tinged with cochineal and Brazil wood. If genuine it will dissolve entirely in spirits of wine, withour sediment. When heated it smells like benzoin, which it contains. See SANGUIS DRACONIS.