Albarello drug jar for Meuse's Syrup of French Lavender

Albarello vase, 17th or 18th century Italian, blue and white maiolica, scene of monk with vision of crucifixion, used for Mesue's Cassidony syrup

The jar on the left hand side was used to store Sciroppo di Stecade di Mesue, translated from Latin as “Mesue’s Syrup of French Lavender”. Honey was infused with lavender and was taken to treat disorders of the brain and nerves, including paralysis, epilepsy, spasms, tremors and pain. Mesue (777-857 CE) was the European name for Yuhanna Ibn Masawayh, a prominent Christian physician who wrote in Arabic. ‘Mesue’ was also the pseudonym of a pharmaceutical writer.

St Francis of Assisi (c. 1181-1226) is shown on the drug jar receiving the stigmata from heaven. His stigmata, which are said to have appeared in 1224, were the first recorded instance of the phenomenon. He is believed to have received the stigmata in recognition of the difficulty of setting up his religious order, the Franciscans. The jar is shown with a similar example for Mesue’s Syrup of French Lavender (A42624).