In ancient and medieval times, it was believed that those who drank from a unicorn's horn would be protected from stomach trouble, epilepsy, and poison. Cups reputedly made of unicorn horn but actually made of rhinoceros horn or narwhal tusk were highly valued in the Middle Ages. Possibly, the horn of a narwhal, a small Arctic whale, The male narwhal has a tooth which develops into a straight spirally twisted tusk. Also called sea-unicorn (THD 65).
Obsolete term for Brucellosis. Also called Mediterranean Fever, Malta Fever, and in cattle, Bang’s Disease.
A parasite, eg a tapeworm.
A tree of the nettle order of dicotyledonous flowering plants, related to the fig and also to the hemp, or marijuana, plant. According to legend, falling asleep under a upas tree was fatal. This probably arose from the fact that the latex from the upas tree in Java (Antiaris toxicaria) was used by natives as an arrow poison for hunting.
A delicate term for a chamber pot.