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Peruvian and ChileanPsychoactive Plants Mentionedin Ruiz's Relacibn (1777-1788)

Richard Evans Schultes, ph.d.

Between 1777 and 1788, the Spanish botanistHipolito Ruiz directed a plant collecting expedition toPeru and Chile. Ruiz is commonly regarded — and quitecorrectly so — as a systematic and floristic botanist, yethis writings indicate that he should also be considered amajor ethnobotanist of his period.

Ruiz was deeply interested in the use of plants andin the classification of economic plants. In these earlydays of scientific botany, for example, he devotedspecial attention to Cinchona, source of quinine, andwrote extensively on this genus. He published monographic studies on specific native medicinal plants.Indigenous uses of plants are often noted in hisdescriptions of new species.

In Ruiz's Relacibn Historica del Viage que Hizo alos Reynos del Peru y Chile el Botdnico Hipolito Ruiz enal Ano de 1777 hasta el de 1788, en Cuya EpocaRegreso a Madrid, a kind of diary, one finds the greatestwealth of his ethnobotanical data. In 1940, the FieldMuseum of Natural History in Chicago published anEnglish translation of the Spanish edition of Ruiz'sRelacion, edited by Padre Agustfh Jesus Barreiro in 1931(Ruiz 1940). This edition represents only a part of theRelacion, a preliminary and incomplete draft.

During the Second World War, while he was servingas Colombian Ambassador to the Court of St. James, thelate Dr. Jaime Jaramillo-Arango discovered in the BritishMuseum (Natural History) the manuscript of the entire

•Jeffrey Professor of Biology, and Director, BotanicalMuseum, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138.

Relacion of Ruiz. This complete document was editedby Dr. Jaramillo and elegantly published in Spain in1952 (Ruiz 1952). At the request of Dr. Jaramillo, thisauthor translated the Spanish text into English with thehelp of his wife, Dona Maria Jose de Jaramillo. Thistranslation is now ready for publication. It is from thisoriginal and complete edition that the following noteson several psychoactive plants of Peru and Chile havebeen culled.

In 1964, a most interesting and historically criticalvolume on Ruiz's expedition was published by ArthurRobert Steele. It is a work incorporating material fromBarreiro's and Jaramillo-Arango's editions of the Relacion that cannot be too highly praised as a meticulousstudy of this outstanding epoch in the botany ofHispano-America.

Although Ruiz apparently never had direct contactwith unacculturated Indians, his ethnobotanical reportsshould be unusually significant to modern students ofethnopharmacology. They are the result of direct observation in the field; they were gathered by a botanist andare based on voucher specimens; and they outline plantuses of 200 years ago by people in a relatively primitivesociety long since passed from existence.

Ruiz mentioned a number of psychoactive plants,but usually with no reference to their purposefulemployment as narcotics or intoxicants. Several of theseplants have only recently been reported as hallucinogenic or otherwise narcotic, and it is not surprising thathe did not record these aboriginal uses of those species.His mere mention of them as components of the flora of

Journal of Psychoactive Drugs Vol. 15(4) Oct-Dec, 1983

SCHULTES PSYCHOACTIVE PLANTS

Peru and Chile at such an early date before widespreaddestruction of the flora had begun is in itself interesting.

In an earlier paper, this author (Schultes 1980) hasenumerated Ruiz's notes on ethnopharmacologically important plants that he encountered in his travels. Thispaper dealt primarily with plants used as medicines. Inthe following pages, the usually sparse information thatRuiz offered on plants with psychoactive properties isreproduced from the translation of the complete Rela-

GOMORTEGA

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POLYPODIACEAE

Polypodium incapcocam Ruiz et Pavon, nom. nud."Common names: cucacuca incapcocam, coca del

Inca ('Inca's coca'). The Incas used this fern, accordingto the Indians, in place of coca and powdered, instead oftobacco, to clear the head."

GOMORTEGACEAE

Gomortega keule (Mol.) I.M. Johnston in Contrib. GrayHerb, n.s., 3, no. 70 (1924) 92.Under the name Gomortega nitida R. et P., Ruiz

mentioned the biodynamic effects of this large tree ofChile, known locally as keule and hualhual. The Ma-puche Indians are said formerly to have valued thisspecies as a psychoactive drug. The intoxicating effectsmay possibly be hallucinogenic. It is known that thefruits, especially in the fresh state, are inebriating. Theactive principle is still not known, but it may be theessential oils, which are abundant in this plant.

Gomortega nitida Common name: keule. Thistree is the tallest and most splendidly frondosetree in Chile, excepting only the pino de chile. Itstands out from the other trees at a great distancebecause of its rich green colour and the lustre ofits leaves. The trunks yield an exquisite dark redwood which polishes up brilliantly. The leaveshave an acid-astringent taste, and they stick to theteeth when they are chewed, because of their resincontent. If crushed between the fingers, they giveoff a fragrance suggestive of rosemary and spiritsof turpentine; judging from its aromatic qualities,we might infer that the plant possesses healingproperties. The leaves burn freely, even whengreen. The beautiful fruits are as large as smallhens' eggs, and they are lustrous and of a yellowcolour that invites one to eat them. When eaten inexcess, however, they bring on headaches. Although not very juicy, the pulp of the fruit issweet and pleasant. The nut or pit is as hard asstone, with a very thick husk enclosing two orthree small seeds in as many chambers. This tree is

Journal of Psychoactive Drugs

Figure 1. Gomortega keule, illustrated as Gormorteganitida in Ruiz et Pavon, Fl. Peruv. et Chil. Prodr. (1794)t. 10.

evergreen and is either in flower or in fruit all yearround, sending out its new blossoms when thefruits are ripe or shortly thereafter.

According to the natives, another species ofkeule grows in the forests from Arauco toValdivia, but I have seen only pits of the fruit,which are more pointed at one end and smallerthan those of our species.

E R Y T H R O X Y L A C E A E

Erytbroxylon coca Lam., Encyel. 2 (1786) 393.The coca plant is so well known as a psychoactive

substance of daily use in the Andes of Peru, Bolivia,northern Argentina, Chile and in the western Amazonthat it needs no detailed discussion. The notes of abotanist working in the Andes two centuries ago,however deserve attention.

Common name: coca. This same name isapplied to the leaves of the plant. Some call thebush cocal, but this name is more properly givento the plot or farm where the shrubs are grown.Thus, one speaks of so-and-so's cocal or of thecocales of such and such a locality.

The Coca Plant. Coca is a small bush, two tofour yards tall at the most, with many slendertwigs spreading horizontally. It is grown in Peru inthe sheltered Quebrada de Chinchao, Chacahuassi,Pozuzo and in other provinces contiguous withthe forests of the Andean Range. It is cultivatedfor its leaves which are gathered and sold.

Properties of Coca and the Method of UsingIt. The Indians of Peru say that these leavespossess the properties of restoring strength to the

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SCHULTES

body after it has been spent in long treks, in thework of the mines and in other physical exercise.They also assert that the gluten and juice thatthese leaves set free during the slow masticationthat the coca chewers practice serves as food andnourishment, and, finally, they agree that theyrest and are happy with the coca during the timethat they are engaged in the process which theyterm chaccar or aculliar. This process consists inplacing the leaves in the mouth and of preparingthem for use. To carry out this operation, theIndian seats himself comfortably, takes the chuspaor coca-pouch (which he always carries hangingfrom his shoulder under one arm, as the shepherdcarries his bag or as the school boy his schoolbag), places it between his thighs, opens it slowlyand extracts the coca from it, leaf by leaf,stretching each leaf and plucking from it the stalk,nerve and any foreign matter that it might have,and places it in his mouth. Here, the leavesgradually become moist, whilst the Indian, in thesame slow and absent-minded manner cleans thesecond batch of leaves and puts it in his mouth.Thus he continues with each successive batch. Inorder that the leaves set free the gluten and otherprinciples that they contain more efficiently, hepartially chews them and adds to them from timeto time a little powdered lime, which he carriesfor this purpose in small calabashes known asiscopurus. Ground up lime is kept in thesecalabashes from which it is extracted with a smallstick, moistened with saliva at the top; it is thenmixed with the soft, moistened mass of leaves inthe mouth. Some employ sugar and still others afixed alkali, especially the ashes of quinoa, ofsugar cane or of other plants, kneaded and madeinto little balls known as lipta. When the Indianhas put enough leaves in his mouth to make alittle ball the size of a small nut, he rolls this ballrepeatedly from one cheek to the other in orderto soften the leaves and to free them of the greencolouring matter which comes out in the firstsaliva. He usually spits this out and does notswallow any of the juices, until that particulararomatic and pleasing flavour that he is waitingfor appears. With the ball in his mouth, preparedas we have explained, he returns happy andrefreshed to carry on his work and his tasks,swallowing from that time on all juices andsubstances that the saliva extracts from the coca.This goes on until the coca is left tasteless andweak, which usually takes two or three hours.


PSYCHOACTIVE PLANTS

Coca is such a necessity for the Indians whowork in the mines that without it they arecompletely unable and too faint to continue theirlabours. Because of this, the owners of the minesare very careful that their peasants never feel thewant of this stimulant.

For a long time, I was convinced that cocawas, like tobacco, a habit-forming plant used tokeep the Indian happy. But experience has mademe change that groundless belief. I have seenpositive proof of the wonderful effects of theseleaves, which seemingly are without taste, aromaand effect. From another point of view, coca is aremedy with proven medicinal properties. As adecoction or infusion, it cures dysenteries, checksdiarrhoea, stimulates delayed menstruation afterchildbirth; as a powder, mixed with sugar, itcorrects acidity and strengthens the teeth.

The Cultivation of Coca. To plant coca, thosededicated to the harvest of this leaf make anumber of holes about a cubic foot in size. Ineach hole, they throw about one hundred seedsand half fill them again with earth, leaving themwithout any care for a year. By this time, theyoung plants have grown about a foot and a half.They are transplanted when they sprout, whichhappens three or four times a year. The smallplants are put into holes a foot and a half deep,placing in each hole two stalks crossed a littleabove the root. They are then half covered withsoil rather firmly packed in. The transplanting isdone to lines three spaces apart with the holes alittle more than a foot from one another.

For the transplanting, done in November andDecember, one must wait until it rains. And ifmany young plants have been pulled up and therehas been no chance to set them out because of adry spell, and if no watering system be available,these plants are tied up into various bundles andplaced with their roots in running water. Takencare of in this way, they will last for ten or twelvedays, usually taking root more easily after thetreatment than those recently pulled from theground. If the plants are large, as sometimeshappens when they are two or three years old, thetips of the roots and stem are cut off beforetransplanting. After the transplanting, no morecare is given the coca except weeding, removingother plant intruders that arise spontaneously inthe plots, using for this work a type of spade orhoe with which they scratch the surface of the soilof the paths and which cuts or pulls out the

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Although the coca bush usually flowers andfruits most of the year, its main flowering periodcomes in October and November. It is then socovered with flowers and fruits that it has hardlyany leaves. Therefore, the coca harvest at thisperiod of the year is sparse as compared with theyields of leaves during the other three seasons.When the bushes are old, they are cut one yardabove the ground, so that they will sprout newand more vigorous shoots. The coca bush cannotbe stripped of its leaves for one and a half to twoyears after being transplanted, depending on thesoil and the strength of the plant. For if the leavesare gathered before this time, the bushes die as aresult of the loss of strength and resistance.

Preparation of Coca Leaves. Little care mustbe given coca leaves after they are removed fromthe bushes by the handfuls. They are put in thesun and stirred constantly with bundles of drybranchlets, in order that they be well ventilated ina short time and dry equally. This seldom isaccomplished in one day, in spite of the strongheat of the sun in these regions; for clouds andshort rain storms often interrupt the process.When the leaves are crisp and almost completelydried, they are gathered up and wrapped in largesheets or blankets so that they may "ferment," asthe natives say, during the night. In this way, theybecome leathery and supple, so that they do notshatter, no matter how much they be crushed; thisprocess alone gives them a better aroma, a morepleasant taste and a brighter colour. All thecoca-gatherers try to avoid the leaves' bulging,that is, rotting, which happens when drying hasnot been carried out on time or when the leavesare allowed to become too wet, bringing on astrong and fetid fermentation. Once well prepared, coca is kept in bags of coarse cloth,squeezed in as tightly as possible with hands andfeet. In Huanuco, five and twenty pounds of cocaleaves fetches from three to seven duros.

ERICACEAE

Pernettya parvifolia (R. et P.) Bentham, PL Hartweg.(1864) 210.

Under the name Arbutus parvifolius R. et P., Ruizreported that this plant has intoxicating properties.Known in Ecuador as taglli, the plant has toxic fruitsthat, when ingested, induce hallucinations and otherpsychic and motor alterations. It is not known if thisspecies has ever been purposely used as a hallucinogen,

although it has recently been suggested that it was. Thefruits contain andromedotoxin.

In Chile, the fruits of Pernettya furens (Hook, exDC.) Klotsch, known as hued-hued or hierba loca,produce mental confusion, madness and permanentinsanity. They cause an intoxication similar to thatinduced by Datura.

"Arbutus parvifolius. Common name: macha ('intoxicates'). This vernacular epithet refers to the properties of the ripened fruits which, though tasty and sweet,are intoxicating when eaten in excessive amounts."

Tbibaudia(?) sp. "Common name: macha-macha('intoxicates-intoxicates'). The fruits of this plant bringon drunkenness, if too many of them be eaten. It acts asan especially strong inebriant for children."

Chemical studies have not disclosed any intoxicatingprinciples in the fruits of Thibaudia, but Ruiz's identification to genus is open to question and the species is notknown. Since other ericaceous plants of South Americaare known to have inebriating fruits, it is possible that aspecies of Thibaudia might likewise possess bioactiveprinciples.

DESFONTAIN IACEAE

Desfontainia spinosa Ruiz et Pavon, Fl. Peruv. Chile 2(1799) 47.All that Ruiz mentioned about this plant is that it

"is a showy shrub on account of its leaves and beautifulred flowers." It has only recently been discovered thatthe leaves of this shrub are employed by the MapucheIndians in southern Chile as a psychoactive substanceand in folk medicine. The leaves are made into a tea byIndians of the southern Andes of Colombia, wheremedicine men take the drink "when they want todream" or "see visions and diagnose disease." The tea isreported to be so potent that it makes the medicine men"go crazy," the reason why it is infrequently used. Itsvernacular name in Chile is taique, chapico, micbaiplanco, trau-trau, and in Colombia, borrachero deparamo. Chemical studies have not yet been carried outon the anomalous genus Desfontainia.

SOLANACEAEBrugmansia arborea (L.) Lagerheim in Bot. Jahrb. 10

(1895) 663.Throughout the Andes, the several species of tree-

Daturas or Brugmansia are assiduously cultivated andfrom time immemorial have been employed as medicinesand hallucinogens. Brugmansia arborea is not the commonest species nor the most widespread, but it occupiedRuiz's attention. He mentioned its medicinal use, butfailed to note that it has a major hallucinogenic use


PSYCHOACTIVE PLANTS

Figure 2. The earliest complete illustration of Desfontainia spinosapublished in Ruiz et Pav6n, Fl. Peruv. et Chil. 2 (1799) L 186.

Journal of Psychoactive DrugsVol. 15(4) Oct-Dec, 1983


Brugmansia arborea (L.) Lagerh.

Figure 3. Brugmansia arborea, illustrated by Lynda Bates in T.E. Lockwood's A Taxonomic Revision ofBrugmansia (Solanaecae), Doctoral thesis, Harvard University (1973).


SCHULTES

among the natives.Under the name Datura arborea L., Ruiz wrote:

"Common names: floripondio, campanulas. The flowersof this plant exhale by night the smell of musk, forwhich reason it is sometimes called almizclillo. Its leaveswhen crushed with pork fat are excellent as a suppurative and anodyne for tumours."

Brugmansia sanguinea (R. et P.) D. Don in Sweet, Brit.FI. Gard. 2(1835)272.Brugmansia sanguinea has been a sacred hallucino

gen throughout its Andean range from earliest times. Itwas a plant of the priests of the Temple of the Sun atSogamoza in Colombia during the Chibcha Empire. A

accompanied to the tomb by his women and slaves, whowere buried in different layers of earth ... of whichnone was without gold. And so that the women andpoor slaves should not fear their death before they saw

Figure 4. The earliest illustration of Brugmansia sanguinea, figured in color in R. Sweet, Br. Fl. Gard., ser. 2,3 (1835) t. 272.

PSYCHOACTIVE PLANTS

the awful tomb, the nobles gave them things to drink ofinebriating tobacco and other leaves of the tree we callborrachero [B. sanguinea] ... so that of their sensesnone is left to foresee the harm soon to befall them."

Among the Jivaro of Ecuador, recalcitrant childrenare given a drink of Brugmansia sanguinea with maize sothat the spirits of the ancestors many admonish them.Indians in Peru still refer to Brugmansia sanguinea asbuaca or buacachaca ("plant of the tomb") from theirbelief that it reveals ancient treasures buried in tombs.

Under the name Datura sanguinea Ruiz et Pavon,Ruiz reported: "Common names: puca-campanilla andfloripondio encarnado ('red floripondio'). When this treeis in bloom, it is extremely beautiful because of the

bells, and its round, leafy crown. The leaves are used asemollients and anodynes, either in the form of cataplasms or when applied single and entire. The seeds arenarcotic, dulling the senses and understanding, and theyare sometimes administered with evil intent as a powderin food. Some of the natives say that there are peoplewho have gone mad merely by lying down to sleep in theshade of these trees, which are found exclusively in thevicinity of towns at high altitudes."

Datura stramonium L., Sp. PI. (1753) 179.Common names: tonco-tonco; chamico. This

plant is known as chamico all over Peru, onaccount of the criminal use that the Indians areaccustomed to make of it: to intoxicate eachother, when they feel that they have beenwronged or when they are overtaken by jealousyin their love affairs. This practice has given use tothe common Peruvian adage: "Esta chamicado ochamicada fulano o fulano" [So-and-so is underthe influence of chamico ], applied whenever aperson is either pensive, taciturn, absent-mindedor else too tipsy from drinking or from othercauses.

Whilst we were in Huanco, it happened that aboy of ten gave a schoolmate of his own agepowdered seeds of chamico in a piece of bread.Within a few hours, it began to exercise itsnarcotic effects, as though the boy had takenwine. Dombey1 was called in by the boy's parentsto administer some remedy; but, notwithstandingthe emetics and other medicines that Dombeyprescribed, the boy was rendered permanentlystupid and silly. Before the poisoning, he had beenintelligent, keen, mischievous and full of fun inboyhood games, but his former personality waslost forever.



/JATriiJ STIiJMOXiCMfjH,

Figure 5. Datura stramonium, illustrated in Plenck, Ic. PL Med. 1 (1788) t. 96.

This plant grows in the streets of Huinuco insuch abundance that, after this happening, theChief Magistrate ordered it all pulled up by theroots and burned. And this order was carried outat that time; but when we returned to Huanucothe second time, we found the streets andoutskirts of the city just as full of chamico asbefore.

The natives apply the crushed leaves and


seeds in a poultice in treating piles, and the effectsare excellent. Some people are accustomed todrink an infusion of a few leaves to relieve pains inurinating and irritations of the skin caused bybitter or strong purgatives. The use of the crushedleaves, mixed with vinegar, is frequently made as apoultice for the spine or kidneys, in order toreduce fevers and to lessen rheumatic pains andbring down the swelling of hernias.

Vol. 15(4) Oct-Dec, 1983


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Figure 6. Nicotiana tabacum, illustrated in Plenck, Ic. PL Med. 1 (1788) t. 99.


SCHULTESPSYCHOACTIVE PLANTS

Figure 7. Lobelia tupa, illustrated in Bot Mag. 52 (1825) t. 2250.

Nicotiana tabacum L., Sp. PI. (1753) 180."Common name: tabaco verdedero ('real tobacco')

Although this plant is cultivated in various provinces ofPeru, where they make abundant harvests to fabricatelong cigars and bunches which are called tabaco deAndullo, it grows wild in all the valleys and warmforests." It is hard to understand why Ruiz would nothave given more attention to such a commonly used andwell-known biodynamic plant as tobacco.

CAMPANULACEAELobelia tupa L., Sp. PL, Ed. 2 (1763) 1318.

"Common name: tuppa." These words are all thatsuch a magnificent six-foot,

red-flowered Lobelia. This ta" --*-- •• ■southern Andes is widelyKnown in southern Peru aitabaco del diablo ("devil's tvalued in Chile as a narcotic and medicine. Chileanpeasants utilize the juice to r '"Mapuche Indians smoke theFurther ethnobotanical field work and chemical studiesshould be carried out on this plant.

NOTES1. Joseph Dombey, M.D. was a French botanist

who accompanied the Spanish group on the RoyalBotanical Expedition to Peru and Chile.

REFERENCESRuiz, H. 1952. (J. Jaramillo-Arango, Ed). Relation HistSrica del p„W; ,- ,.*,«..

V,ageaUe Hizo a los Reynos del Peri y Chile el Botanico D. Schultes Rf" r™ ^^ *'** MUSCUm °f NatUral Hist0^H.pohto Run en el AHo de 1 777 basta el de 1 788 en Cuva ru?' » ,' " a" """"Pharmacologist in Peru andEpoca RegresS a Madrid. Real Academia de Ciencias Exactas « ,', ? Z *""*"'" LeafUtS' Harvard diversity Vol.F i s i c a s y N a t u r a l e s d e M a d r i d , 2 v o L ' « • Z 7 - 1 2 Z

Ruiz HI 940. (B.E. Dahlgren, Trans.). Travels of Ruiz, Pavon an\ iS ! ^YuZ? ^ ' *" **"* The ^edition of Ruizand Dombey in Peru and Chile (1777-1788). Botanical series, Duke uXrd p/esf "' ^ ""^ ^ Car°Hna:

Journal of Psychoactive DrugsVol. 15(4) Oct-Dec, 1983

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