Having doubted the authenticity, I cross checked the names on the box that I could read to when they were first described as such. It checks out as Carl Linnaeus first described the names as they are posted on the box. They are indeed well known poisons of the time.
However...doubt must be cast as not all these plants would have been easily available at the time. The Belladonna is of European origin, the Datura was Mexican. While entirely possible an assassin could have Datura, it's entirely improbable because it isn't deadly in small quantities and would be a terrible assassin's poison. There would be a much better local plant to put in that drawer.
My conclusion is that it's a nice forgery someone with a decent knowledge of poisonous plants but not an experienced botanist.
Oh, and those buckles are photoshopped, and I suspect the entire thing is CAD.
diegojones4 on September 21st, 2017 at 23:25 UTC »
How do we know this is for assassin's poison? With the anatomy picture I'm thinking it could just be a novelty for a doctor.
Yum_Kaax on September 22nd, 2017 at 00:13 UTC »
Having doubted the authenticity, I cross checked the names on the box that I could read to when they were first described as such. It checks out as Carl Linnaeus first described the names as they are posted on the box. They are indeed well known poisons of the time.
However...doubt must be cast as not all these plants would have been easily available at the time. The Belladonna is of European origin, the Datura was Mexican. While entirely possible an assassin could have Datura, it's entirely improbable because it isn't deadly in small quantities and would be a terrible assassin's poison. There would be a much better local plant to put in that drawer.
My conclusion is that it's a nice forgery someone with a decent knowledge of poisonous plants but not an experienced botanist.
Oh, and those buckles are photoshopped, and I suspect the entire thing is CAD.
VizualAbstract on September 22nd, 2017 at 03:03 UTC »
Illustration is by Andreas Vesalius and it’s one of the most commonly found photos on drawings of skeletons in anatomy books. Or Pinterest.