Bibergeil

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Bibergeil
Dried castor sacks; German Pharmacy Museum , Heidelberg Castle
The beaver's bag system, the large castor bags dark, including the smaller oil bags

The castoreum or castoreum is a secretion from specific paired contiguous and club-shaped bags or pouches, Castor bags (misleading glands sacks ) under the pubic bone of the beaver ( Castor fiber ) belonging to a same powdered drug mass can be processed. However, they are not glands in a histological sense because they do not secrete. The castoreum also has various other names; Geil glands , cool bags , Kastorsäcke , Präputialsäcke , Beaver Horny , even Geilen or Bibersteine . Sometimes it is just referred to as a castor .

The musky fragrance secretion is formed in the body of the beaver and directed into the bag Castor, it consists of a complex mixture of chemical compounds , probably from secondary metabolites of urine are formed. The beaver uses the sebum-like, but not greasy, rather gummy, brownish and strongly pungent-smelling secretion for grooming and its scent marking and to mark its territorial boundaries as well as to differentiate its conspecifics and family members.

The two pouches (misleading preputial glands) of the beaver, which weigh about 25 to 250 grams, about the size of a hen's egg, until the 16th century or longer for testicles or sometimes in New France for kidneys, are located between the anus and external genital organs and by one brown-black wrinkled skin are / were removed from the killed animal and smoke-dried. It can then be stored longer to improve quality. The smell is similar to that of valerian , is leathery and animalistic, the taste can be described as bitter, pungent and aromatic. In the USA there have been special beaver farms for some time , where the animals initially stunned are “milked” and the precious secretion is pressed out of the glands without killing the beavers.

The beaver has two other, smaller glands (oil sacs, fat sacs); in contrast to the castor sacs, these are real holocrine glands ( anal glands or perianal glands) from which the beaver geil fat (Axungia castorei) is obtained; it's greasy, with a weaker, slightly greasy odor. The secretion from these oil sacks is mainly used to make the fur waterproof, similar to the rump gland in birds. These secretions are colored according to sexes; greyish, with a paste-like consistency in females and yellowish-brown and liquid in males. In America, these smaller bags are also known as oil stones .

The two different beaver bags are also generally, misleadingly, referred to as anal or anal glands or simply oil bags by different authors.

The name "Castoreum" was also used earlier for the beaver testicles or sometimes, due to the strong aroma of the tubers, for the beaver root , probably the common Easter louse ( Aristolochia clematitis ) and ( Aristolochia baetica ).

The castoreum has nothing, as one might assume, to do with castor beans or castor oil , these are terms for castor oil or the seeds of the miracle tree (English castor beans).

Chemical composition

24 of the numerous aromatic compounds contained in the Bibergeil have meanwhile been identified as substances with a pheromone - like effect. The following four substances, two phenols and two ketones, are most involved in this effect:

In addition, five other ingredients were identified that make up a smaller proportion of the effect:

use

medicine

In medicine Bibergeil was (or prepared therefrom oleum castoreum or castor oil or Bibergeil- electuary Diacastoreum and preparations thereof) to the 19th century for gout and against spasms, hysterical seizures, nervousness and more used. Already in Greco-Roman antiquity, the substance classified as “hot and dry” in humoral pathology was used against “cold and wet” diseases, etc. a. Also used against epileptic or epilepsy-like convulsions and against paralysis associated with speech disorders (such as occur in TIA and stroke ). Its use as an aphrodisiac is based on the same, humoral-pathologically justified principle as its use as a remedy for paralysis. Bibergeil was in great demand as a medicinal product and has been detectable in the German-speaking area since the 8th century. The salicylic acid it contains (ingredient of willow bark ; beaver's favorite food, → acetylsalicylic acid ) has an actual medicinal effect . Today, Bibergeil is only of economic importance in homeopathy .

Bibergeil was also used as a drug against poisoning and was also part of the Theriac .

In the later Middle Ages in Western Europe, Bibergeil was mainly obtained from Asian Minor or Siberian beavers, because in Western Europe the populations were very low or nonexistent. It is available as Castoreum canadense (Canadian or American beaver horn) and the stronger smelling Castoreum sibiricum (Siberian or Russian beaver horn) in pharmacies as tincture and powder.

food

In the USA, Castoreum is also approved as a food additive by the Food and Drug Administration and classified as safe. In the USA, labeling is only required as a "natural flavor", predominantly as a vanilla, raspberry and strawberry flavor.

Use as a food additive is controversial because beaver hunting in North America is said to have a harmful effect on the beaver population (in Europe, beavers are protected according to Annex II and IV of the Habitats Directive ). Due to the only vague labeling requirement in the USA, even vegans and vegetarians cannot clearly identify products containing Bibergeil.

In Sweden , Bibergeil is used to flavor "Bäverhojt", a traditional schnapps drink.

perfumery

In the perfumery , Bibergeil, which is said to have an aphrodisiac (erotic) effect, is a component of some perfumes . Similar substances are now produced synthetically and used in cosmetics. Here it serves as a fixative, i.e. H. as a component that increases the bond and adhesive strength of the volatile fragrances of the perfume composition. In a concentrated form it smells unpleasant to disgusting, only in strong dilution does it develop the scent notes valued by perfumers .

hunt

In the hunt, beaver geil and preferably beaver geil fat can be used as a lure for predators and beavers themselves. Another use of the castor bags and oil sacks was as bait when fishing.

Others

In the Middle Ages, beekeepers used castoreum to keep wasps, predatory bees, and other Hymenoptera predators away from their beehives. It is also used as a flavoring in tobacco and snuff and can be used for smoking and incense .

literature

  • Barbara Mertin: Castoreum - the aspirin of the Middle Ages . Biology Center Linz, Austria, 2003, Oenisia 9, also catalogs of Upper Austria. Landesmuseen, Neue Serie 2, 2003, pp. 47–51.
  • Meinolf Schumacher : The beaver - an ascetic? A metaphorical motif from fable and physiologus. In: Euphorion . 86, 1992, pp. 347-353 ( digital copy , PDF; 3.89 MB).
  • Stefan Wulle: Henbane and Bibergeil. Technische Uni Braunschweig, 1999, ISBN 3-927115-41-X (50 years of the DFG special pharmacy collection, for the development of the medicinal treasure: booklet and selection bibliography for the exhibition from April 30 to September 16, 1999).
  • G. Olhoff: Earthly Scents - Heavenly Lust: A Cultural History of Scents. Springer, Basel 1992, ISBN 978-3-0348-6161-8 , pp. 139 ff.
  • B. Mertin: Castoreum - the aspirin of the Middle Ages. In: Johanna Sieber (Ed.): Biber - the successful return. Biology Center Linz, 2003, ISBN 3-85474-106-5 , pp. 47-52, PDF on ZOBODAT

Web links

Wiktionary: Bibergeil  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Bibergeil: from beaver , and from Middle High German horny , horny , testicles. Cf. Friedrich Kluge , Alfred Götze : Etymological dictionary of the German language . 20th edition, ed. by Walther Mitzka . De Gruyter, Berlin / New York 1967; Reprint (“21st unchanged edition”) ibid 1975, ISBN 3-11-005709-3 , p. 242 .; and Joseph Hyrtl : The old German made-up words for anatomy. Braumüller, Vienna 1884; Neudruck Fritsch, Munich 1966, p. 58 f .; and Nabil Osman (ed.): Small lexicon of German words of Arabic origin. CH Beck, Munich 1971 and (7th, unchanged edition) 1993, p. 99 f. ( Horny birth , horny : testicles or ovaries)
  2. ↑ Castoreum: via Latin castoreus ( coming from the beaver, beaver) from Greco-Latin castor , beaver; to Greek Κάστωρ / Kástōr for beaver; this probably as the excellent of kékasmai , to distinguish oneself, or perhaps from Sankritisch kastûri , musk; see. Hjalmar Frisk : Greek etymological dictionary. 3 volumes, Heidelberg 1960–1972; Reprint ibid 1973 (= Indo-European Library. Series II), Volume 1, pp. 799 and 811.
  3. ↑ Jürgen Martin: The 'Ulmer Wundarznei'. Introduction - Text - Glossary on a monument to German specialist prose from the 15th century. Königshausen & Neumann, Würzburg 1991 (= Würzburg medical-historical research. Volume 52), ISBN 3-88479-801-4 (also medical dissertation Würzburg 1990), p. 117.
  4. ↑ W. Blaschek, R. Hansel, K. Keller a. a .: Hager's Handbook of Pharmaceutical Practice. 5th edition. Volume 2: Drugs A – K , Springer, 1998, ISBN 3-540-61618-7 , p. 300.
  5. ↑ Duden : The spelling. 17th edition. Bibliographisches Institut , Mannheim, Vienna, Zurich 1973, ISBN 3-411-00911-X , p. 174: "Gland secretion of the beaver".
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  7. ^ Johann Ebers: The New and Complete Dictionary of the German and English Languages. Volume 3, Breitkopf, 1796, p. 393.
  8. ↑ BV Burger: Mammalian semiochemicals. In: Topics in Current Chemistry. Volume 240, 2004, pp. 231-278. doi: 10.1007 / b98318 , online (PDF; 582 kB), at indiana.edu, accessed on February 11, 2017.
  9. ↑ The Language Brockhaus. Eberhard Brockhaus, Wiesbaden 1949, p. 75: strong-smelling separation of the beaver .
  10. ^ Johann Christian Traugott Schlegel , Johann Christian Wiegleb : German Pharmacist Book. First part, 4th edition, Ettinger, 1804, p. 395 f.
  11. ↑ Johann Heinrich Dierbach : The drugs of Hippocrates or attempt to systematically enumerate the drugs occurring in all Hippocratic writings. Heidelberg 1824, p. 229 f. ("Kastorios orchis")
  12. ↑ Gordon M. Sayre: Les Sauvages Americains. Univ. of Noth Carolina Press, 1997, ISBN 0-8078-2346-5 , pp. 223 f.
  13. ↑ Barbara Herman: Scent and Subversion. Lyons Press, 2013, ISBN 978-0-7627-8438-7 , p. 253.
  14. ↑ Beaver Butts Emit Goo Used for Vanilla Flavoring on nationalgeographic.com, accessed June 4, 2018.
  15. ↑ Gerald E. Svendsen, William D. Huntsman: A Field Bioassay of Beaver Castoreum and Some of Its Components. In: The American Midland Naturalist. Vol. 120, no. 1, 1988, pp. 144-149, doi: 10.2307 / 2425894 .
  16. ^ F. Rosell, Lixing Sun: Use of anal gland secretion to distinguish the two beaver species Castor canadensis and C. fiber. In: Wildlife Biology. 5 (2), 1999, pp. 119-124, doi: 10.1007 / BF00994781 , online (PDF), at ScholarWorks @ Central Washington University, accessed June 6, 2018.
  17. ↑ Biology of the Elbe beaver (PDF), from the State Administration Office of Saxony-Anhalt, accessed on June 5, 2018.
  18. ↑ Gerhard Schwab: Sex determination of the European beaver (PDF; 1.6 MB) with a picture of the beaver glands, at Université de Neuchâtel, accessed on June 5, 2018.
  19. ^ WL Braekman (ed.): Zestiende-Eeuwese Veterinaire Literatuur uit de Nederlanden. Brussels 1987 (= Scripta: Mediaeval and Renaissance texts and studies. Volume 20, p. 148).
  20. ↑ Compare also Hermann Stannius : Textbook of the comparative anatomy of the vertebrates. Veit & Comp., Berlin 1846, p. 373 with note 18 ( oil sacks ); limited preview in Google Book search.
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  22. ^ Róisín Campbell-Palmer, Derek Gow, Robert Needham and others: The Eurasian Beaver. Pelagic Pub., 2015, ISBN 978-1-78427-034-6 , pp. 12 f.
  23. ^ Gary E. Moulton, Thomas W. Dunlay: The Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Vol. 6, Univ. of Nebraka Press, 1990, 2001, ISBN 0-8032-2893-7 , p. 197.
  24. ^ J. and W. Grimm : German dictionary. First volume: A – Biermolke , Hirzel 1854, p. 1807 f.
  25. ↑ Johannes von Cuba , Eucharius Rößlin , Hieronymus Brunschwig : Kreuterbuch. Egenolph, 1542, S. XC, digitizedhttp: //vorlage_digitalisat.test/1%3D~GB%3D~IA%3D~MDZ%3D%0A11069310_00414~SZ%3D~ double-sided%3D~LT%3D~PUR%3D .
  26. ^ Wolfgang Schneider : Lexicon for the history of medicines. Volume 5, Govi, 1974, p. 125, online at publikationsserver.tu-braunschweig.de, accessed on June 3, 2018.
  27. ↑ Medical historical journal. Volume 41, no. 2, Franz Steiner Verlag, 2006, p. 143 f.
  28. ↑ Detailed explanations can be found in the article Castor Oil.
  29. ^ D. Müller-Schwarze, PW Houlihan: Pheromonal activity of single castoreum constituents in beaver, Castor canadensis. In: Journal of Chemical Ecology. 17th volume, No. 4, April 1991, Springer, Netherlands, doi: 10.1007 / BF00994195 .
  30. ↑ Adam Lonitzer : Kreuterbuch. Artificial Conterfeytunge of trees, shrubs, hedges, herbs, grain, Gewuertze [...] made by Adamo Lonicero. Edited by Peter Uffenbach, (Frankfurt am Maion 1557, further edition there 1630; last edition Augsburg 1783) Ulm an der Donau 1679; Reprint (Leipzig 1934 and by) Konrad Kölbl, (Grünwald near) Munich 1962, p. 602.
  31. ↑ Werner Dressendörfer: Late medieval medicine taxes of the Munich city doctor Sigmund Gotzkircher from the Grazer Codex 311. A contribution to the early history of the southern German pharmacy. Königshausen & Neumann Würzburg 1978 (= Würzburg medical historical research. Volume 15), p. 245 ( oleum de castore ).
  32. ↑ Wouter S. van den Berg (ed.): Eene Middelnederlandsche vertaling van het Antidotarium Nicolaï (Ms. 15624–15641, Kon. Bibl. Te Brussel) with the Latijnschen tekst der first printed uitgave van het Antidotarium Nicolaï. Brill, Leiden 1917, p. 207, archive.org , p. 118 f.
  33. ↑ Gundolf Keil (ed.): The 'Freiberg Medicines Teaching' of the 13th century in Middle Low German transcription. In: Volker Schmidtchen , Eckhard Jäger (Ed.): Economy, technology and history. Contributions to research into cultural relations in Germany and Eastern Europe. Festschrift for Albrecht Timm on his 65th birthday. Camen, Berlin 1980 (published 1981), ISBN 3-921515-07-6 , pp. 63-82; here: p. 76.
  34. ^ Theodor Husemann . Handbook of the entire pharmacology. Volume II, 2nd ed., Springer, Berlin 1883, p. 933, archive.org (3rd ed.) 1892, p. 492, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorfhttp: //vorlage_digitalisat.test/1%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fdigital.ub.uni-duesseldorf.de%2Fvester%2Fcontent%2Fpageview%2F1697535~GB%3D~IA%3D~MDZ%3D%0A~SZ% 3D ~ double-sided% 3D ~ LT% 3DHeinrich-Heine-Universit% C3% A4t% 20D% C3% BCsseldorf ~ PUR% 3D .
  35. ↑ Hans Wölfel: The drug book Circa Instans in a version of the XIII. Century from the University Library Erlangen: Text and commentary as a contribution to plant and drug science of the Middle Ages. Mathematical and scientific dissertation, Berlin 1939 (A. Preilipper, Hamburg 1939), p. 32.
  36. ↑ Barbara Fehringer: The "Speyer herb book" with the medicinal plants of Hildegard von Bingen. A study on the Middle High German “Physica” reception with a critical edition of the text. Würzburg 1994 (= Würzburg medical historical research. Supplement 2), p. 131 (“Kastorium is called bibergeil [...] and the same powder under dez escorted people to whom parlis sin has spoken, which he cannot talk [. ..] ").
  37. ^ Dioscurides . De materia medica. Translation Berendes 1902, Book II, Chapter 26, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorfhttp: //vorlage_digitalisat.test/1%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fdigital.ub.uni-duesseldorf.de%2Fvester%2Fcontent%2Fpageview%2F1697535~GB%3D~IA%3D~MDZ%3D%0A~SZ% 3D ~ double-sided% 3D ~ LT% 3DHeinrich-Heine-Universit% C3% A4t% 20D% C3% BCsseldorf ~ PUR% 3D .
  38. ↑ Pliny the Elder . Naturalis historia. Book XXXII, § 26-31.
  39. ↑ Galenus . De simplicium medicamentorum temperamentis ac facultatibus. lib. VII, cap. XI / 15 (after Kühn 1826, Volume XII, p. 337), online at biusante.parisdescartes.fr, accessed on February 1, 2017.
  40. ↑ Barbara Fehringer (1994), p. 131 ("Kastorium is called bibergeil: that is hot natture [...]. Wellichem man the parlis sin gemechde has said that he does not want to be huge, the provocative is thick with hot win, do bibergeil ynne is boiled ").
  41. ↑ Swiss Lexicon. 7 volumes, Encyclios, Zurich 1945–1948, Volume 1, p. 1230.
  42. ↑ Ulrich Stoll: The 'Lorsch Pharmacopoeia'. A medical compendium of the 8th century (Codex Bambergensis medicinalis 1). Text, translation and technical glossary. (Philosophical dissertation Würzburg 1989) Stuttgart: Steiner, 1992 (= Sudhoffs Archive , Supplement 28). P. 688–695, here: P. 490 (on castoreum : “fatty secretion from the preputial sac of Castor fiber L”.).
  43. ↑ Petrus Uffenbach (Ed.): Pedacii Dioscoridis Anazarbaei Kraeuterbuch [...] (translated into German by Johannes Danzius), Frankfurt am Main (at Johann Bringern) 1610, p. 449 (“The Bibergeyl is good against the snakes Gifft [ ...] The Bibergeyl is considered to be the best, since two Hoedlin are found together at the beginning ”).
  44. ↑ Leo Scholl: The remedies originating from the animal kingdom in the Roßarzneibuch of Mang Seuter (1583) and their application. Veterinary medicine dissertation Munich 1939, pp. 13-16.
  45. ↑ Lexicon of the Middle Ages . Volume 2, 106-108.
  46. ↑ Konrad Geßner : General Thier-Buch, that is: Real and lively illustration of all four-footed animals [...], translated into German by the famous Mr. Conradum Forerum [...]. Frankfurt am Main (Wilhelm Serlin) 1669 (reprint Hanover 1994), p. 43.
  47. ↑ Heinz Brauer (Ed.): Handbook of environmental protection and environmental protection technology. Volume 1, Springer, 1997, ISBN 3-540-58024-7 , p. 22.
  48. ^ Curt Hunnius: Pharmaceutical Dictionary . 6th edition, ed. by Artur Burger and Helmut Wachter, Walter de Gruyter, Berlin / New York 1986, ISBN 3-11-007029-4 , p. 216.
  49. ↑ GA Burdock: Safety assessment of castoreum extract as a food ingredient. In: Int. J. Toxicol. 26, No. 1, 2007, pp. 51-55, doi: 10.1080 / 10915810601120145 .
  50. ↑ Thomas E. Furia: CRC Handbook of Food Additives. Volume 2, Second Edition, Chemical Rubber Company, CRC Press, 1980, ISBN 0-8493-0543-8 , p. 253, limited preview in Google Book Search.
  51. ↑ Appendix II Habitats Directive , accessed in October 2012.
  52. ↑ Annex IV and V of the Habitats Directive , accessed in October 2012.
  53. ↑ HJT ( memento from July 20, 2014 in the web archive archive.today ), accessed July 16, 2014.
  54. ↑ Gerhart Hoffmeister: Fishermen and diving texts from Lake Constance. Part 1: Introduction and text. In: Gundolf Keil, Rainer Rudolf, Wolfram Schmitt, Hans J. Vermeer (eds.): Specialist literature of the Middle Ages. Festschrift for Gerhard Eis., Metzler, Stuttgart 1968, pp. 261–275, here: p. 271.