The power of poisons: From Cleopatra to Socrates and Cyclops
February 26, 2015 Carol Clark
Special Lecture
What: "Deadly Cures: Medical Discoveries from Poisonous Plants"
Where: Fernbank Museum
When: March 1, 4 p.m.
The event is free, but reservations are required by calling 404-929-6400.
Why did Cleopatra choose to be bitten by a poisonous snake when she had access to any number of plant poisons to commit suicide?
In the video below, Emory ethnobotanist Cassandra Quave explains how the Egyptian queen experimented before picking her poison. She also describes how the myth of Cyclops may have originated from the effects of a medicinal herb.
Poison has shaped history, myth and medicine in myriad ways. Over time, people have discovered ingenious ways to transform and make use of plant poisons for use in agriculture, fishing, hunting and medicine.
