Botanical Name

Phyllanthus amarus Schumach. & Thonn. [Euphorbiaceae]

Specimen Type

Herbarium Sheet [Preserved Specimen]

Collector

Peter Thonning

Collection Date-s

1799 – 1803

Collection Location

southern part of the country [Ghana]

Colonial Context

Danish Gold Coast of Africa 1663–1950

Annotations Determinations and Type Specimen Status

On sheet: HB. VAHLII Phyllanthus niruri Thonning e Guinea n.4 Ph: amarus Beskr. minime sed Ph.
mutabilis ejusdem Mst. et microphyllus Collet S.

Label1: Phyllanthus Niruri s. debilis Müll. Arg. Det. Müll. Arg.

Label2: Phyllanthus amarus Schum. & Thonn. 19.VI. 1964 Det. G.L. Webster

IDC microfiche foto: Isert et Thonning nr. 83 III 3-4

Phyllanthus amarus Schumach. and Thonn. SYNTYPE. Beskr. Guineiske Pl.: 421 (1827)

Ownership and Collection Management History

Thonning 4; ex herb. Martin Vahl

Common Names

Aumaadoati [Schumacher/Thonning]

Historical Cultural and Traditional Knowledge

[Hepper (1976) p. 58:] "Its leaves have a penetrating pure bitter taste mainly after being dried; the herbaceous plant is superior; in this respect far surpassing Menyanthes trifoliata in bitterness and pure taste; with brandy it yields a very bitter essence: the natives boil it with Pytto and use it in this way for expelling fever and stomach pains. For dropsy both in the abdomen and beneath the skin I have seen it used with much efficacy; the plant is crushed along with a few grains-of-Paradise [Aframomum] and rubbed in over the whole body; a decoction of the plant is used internally. Th."

Source

Herbarium C NHMD

NHMD Herbarium C Catalogue Number

C10004333

C10004333

Copyright Owner

Natural History Museum of Denmark

Copyright License

CC BY 4.0 (images) and CC0 (metadata)