Madder

Rubia tinctorum

HRB-0182Entry “MADDER” in the 1850 textIn Culpeper’s 1652 first edition

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Old claims, quoted verbatim: not medical advice. A warning sits above the claims and never hides them; no warning does not mean safe, only that no source here has flagged the plant.

Substance of concernIts lucidin damages DNA, and madder root caused liver and kidney tumours in rats (IARC; humans unclassified). Not for regular use.EFSA: lucidinEFSA’s list of substances, not a danger rating. Checked 26 October 2026.

Historical correspondence. Ruled by Mars, by Culpeper. A traditional astrological assignment, kept apart from the modern evidence; it is not a finding.

Culpeper’s claims about it: 8, under 8 headings

  1. BruisesCLM-000372
    It is available for the palsy and sciatica, and effectual for bruises inward and outward, and is therefore much used in vulnerary drinks.
    QUO-000317Papers and the EMA’s verdict, in the Concordance
  2. JaundiceCLM-001031
    It is a sure remedy for the yellow jaundice, by opening the obstructions of the liver and gall, and cleansing those parts;
    QUO-000772Papers and the EMA’s verdict, in the Concordance
  3. Jaundice — YellowCLM-001088
    It is a sure remedy for the yellow jaundice, by opening the obstructions of the liver and gall, and cleansing those parts;
    QUO-000772Papers and the EMA’s verdict, in the Concordance
  4. LiverCLM-001200
    It is a sure remedy for the yellow jaundice, by opening the obstructions of the liver and gall, and cleansing those parts;
    QUO-000772Papers and the EMA’s verdict, in the Concordance
  5. MelancholyCLM-001319
    it opens also the obstructions of the spleen, and diminishes the melancholy humour.
    QUO-000897Papers and the EMA’s verdict, in the Concordance
  6. Scurf (or running tetters)CLM-001499
    The leaves and roots beaten and applied to any part that is discoloured with freckles, morphew, the white scurf, or any such deformity of the skin, cleanses thoroughly, and takes them away.
    QUO-001017Papers and the EMA’s verdict, in the Concordance
  7. Skin (to clear)CLM-0024041850 index, p. 109
    The leaves and roots beaten and applied to any part that is discoloured with freckles, morphew, the white scurf, or any such deformity of the skin, cleanses thoroughly, and takes them away.
    QUO-001017Papers and the EMA’s verdict, in the Concordance
  8. SwellingsCLM-001811
    The seed hereof taken in vinegar and honey, helps the swelling and hardness of the spleen.
    QUO-001157Papers and the EMA’s verdict, in the Concordance

Source

Nicholas Culpeper, The Complete Herbal, a new edition (London: Thomas Kelly, 1850). Project Gutenberg eBook #49513. SRC-CUL-1850

Quotations are verbatim from the 1850 text, line breaks joined. Modern research and the European regulator’s verdict on each claim are on the Concordance page, kept apart from this historical record.