Of witches, werewolves, and UFOs

By Chelsie Vandaveer

October 29, 2001

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The tropane alkaloids are a group of related compounds found in the Solanaceae, the family of potatoes and tomatoes. Medicinally used, the refined alkaloids—scopolamine, atropine, and hyoscyamine—have saved thousands of lives. But unrefined extracts of these alkaloids have a delusional side that have given humanity some of its outlandish
Plant of the Week 08/19/2002

Angel's Trumpet (Brugmansia suaveolens)
Plant of the Week 08/19/2002

legends that persist in our folklore.

People realized early on that the ingestion of plants in the Solanaceae was usually fatal or at the least extremely unpleasant. In Europe during the Middle Ages, the church was the eminent focus of people's lives, but there were people outside of the societal norm. A few of these groups, usually labeled as witches or demon-possessed, used the alkaloids of the Solanaceae in their escapes from reality. In the hysteria of the times with the problems of bubonic plague and ergotism (See Herbal Folklore September 10, 2001), these people ran a grave risk of being burned for their own good.

Witches' brews were often complex recipes of obscurely named herbs (among which was a solanaceous plant) and animal parts. These plants and parts were boiled to make crude extracts; these extracts were mixed with fats and oils. The greasy concoctions were rubbed onto sensitive areas of the body, the chemicals in the extracts being absorbed through the skin. The toxicity and delusions eventually took their toll; the witches' health failed and mental illness often set in. But it is the almost universal delusion that is so interesting with this family of toxins; women often believed they had the ability to fly, men tended to believe they became lycanthropes (werewolves).

The use of these toxins was not limited to Europe. Native American groups like the Yaqui of northwestern Mexico used tropane alkaloids in religious rituals. Here, again, was the belief that the user was capable of flight and the flight was supposed to reveal wisdom or knowledge.

As dark and dangerous as the unrefined tropane alkaloids are, there is a darker side. Criminal factions in Colombia have used a version of the alkaloids to rob or assault unwitting victims. A white tasteless powder, called burundanga, made from native solanums renders the victims powerless and unable to remember exactly what happened to them. The victims are often found days later injured and in various states of undress. A few even believed they were UFO abductees.

To view some of the prettier members of the Solanaceae, click on the link for Horsetail Haven:

http://www.io.com/~wilsone/daturaimages.htm