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BERLU,
John Jacob (druggist, fl. 1690).
The treasury of drugs unlock’d. Or a full and true description of all sorts of Drugs, and chymical preparations, sold by Drugists, whereby you may know the place of their growth, and from whence they come, and how to distinguish the good from the bad. Very useful for all gentlemen, merchants, druggists, doctors, apothecaries, chirurgeons, and their apprentices. As also for all travellers, seamen, custom house officers, and all others that either traffick in them, or make any use of them, or those that import or deliver any of ‘em at the waterside. Giving a true account of all those that are prohibited, and those that are not, whereby many needless disputes and law suits may be prevented. The whole work alphabetically digested, with a compleat catalogue of all drugs, &c. By Jo. Jacob Berlu of London, merchant in drugs. London: Printed for John Harris at the Harrow against the church in the Poultrey, and Tho. Howkins in George-Yard, in Lombard-stret [sic]... Price Bound One Shilling, 1690. Collation:
12mo: A–G12 (–G12), 83 of 84 leaves, pp. [6] 125 (i.e. 147,
117–125 repeated) [15], without the blank G12. Woodcut arms on A1 verso,
G6–10 ‘Catalogus pharmacorum omnium quae apud Pharmacopolas
Londinenses venalia prostant’, G11 publisher’s advertisements. First edition. Advertised in the Hillary Term Catalougue, price bound 1s, as on the titlepage (II, 300). Further editions appeared in 1724, 1733 and 1738. ¶ An important document in the history of the drug trade. Over four hundred drugs are described, often with notes on how to assess their quality and authenticity. It was written primarily for merchants, for ‘nothing can promote Trade more than for Men to learn and understand those Commodities and Merchandizes they do intend to trade in.’ Berlu is careful to mark prohibited drugs with an asterisk in the text and in the 12-page catalogue of drugs sold by London pharmacists. He gives the place of growth of several drugs ‘to avoid also those dangers (of prohibited Goods) by which I have been (as it were) shipwracked’. We learn that by the ‘Rocks and Perils’ of importing prohibited drugs he has himself ‘fore-gone a good estate’. Prohibited drugs were those that, contrary to the stipulations of the Navigation Acts, were not brought directly from the place of production in English ships (thanks to Andrew Hunter for this information).
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