Plant Intoxicants: A Classic Text on the Use of Mind-Altering Plants [Paperback]

Baron Ernst von Bibra (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 1995

This pioneering study of psychoactive plants and their role in society, initially published in 1855, is one of the first books to examine the cultivation, preparation, and consumption of the world’s major stimulants and inebriants. It presents a fascinating panorama of the world-wide use of psychoactive plants in the nineteenth century.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Plant Intoxicants illustrates an enchanting universal use of psychoactive plants in the nineteenth century. Von Bibra brings to the subject a keen intellect, an engaging sense of humor, and a refreshing open-mindedness unusual for his, or any other time."
(

The Reader's Review

)

"An excellent work covering a fascinating and sometimes controversial subject. Recommended."
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Critical Review

)

"An entertaining journey into von Bibra's 19th-century examination of the cultivation and use of stimulants, narcotics, and hallucinogens. Ethnobotanist Jonathan Ott, considered to be von Bibra's contemporary counterpart, complements the author's work with an extensive annotation."
(

Napra Review

)

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: German

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Healing Arts Press (February 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0892814985
• ISBN-13: 978-0892814985
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,567,172 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of Earliest Text on People and Plants, January 11, 2006

By 

R. Lowe "RemOrb" - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Plant Intoxicants: A Classic Text on the Use of Mind-Altering Plants (Paperback)

First of all the Notes section of the book is written by Jonathan Ott and that alone makes this book a valuable purchase, especially considering the prices of Mr. Ott's other works.

As the back cover goes..

Plant Intoxicants is a pioneering study of psychoactive plants and their role in society. Initially pusblished in Nuremberg is 1855, it is one of the first books to examine the cultivation, preperation, and consumption of the world's major stimulants and inebriants. Drawing on his own travel experiences as well as the writings of his predeccessors, Baron Ernst von Bibra (1806-78) devotes a full chapter to each of seventeen plants, ranging from such mild stimulants as coffee and tea, through tobacco and hashish, to powerful narcotics and hallucinogens such as opium and fly agaric mushrooms.
Written in a lively style, Plant Intoxicants paints a fascinating panorama of the worldwide use of psychoactive plants in the nineteenth century. Von Bibra brings to the subject a keen intellect, an engaging sense of humor, and a refreshing open-mindedness unusual for his, or any, time. While frankly acknowledgeing and describing in vivid detail the depravities of the opium den, he holds the opinion that intoxicants, when used in moderation are "gifts bestowed by the gods on man to alleviate his misery and reconcile men with one another." His findings, unhampered by the restrictive morality of his era, are a testemant to the intellectual freedom enjoyed by wealthy private researchers in the nineteenth century.
Complementing and enhancing von Bibra's work is a full annotation by his modern-day counterpart Jonathan Ott, an ethnobotanist and the author of Pharmacotheon along with many other great books. A foreward by Martin Haseneier, the world's foremost authority on von Bibra's life and work, supplies a biographical sketch and places Plant Intoxicants at the vangaure of popular scientific writing on the role of plants in human culture.