Found in the Hermetikon archive

Elder

Sambucus nigra

Elder appears in Hermetikon as an archive-backed plant entry, with references across historical medical, magical, symbolic, and ritual contexts where the source texts support them.

Risk: moderate
Books: 32
Contexts: 4
Mentions: 231

Overview Reading Contexts Citations Related Books

Archive Profile

Identity, safety, and search aliases used to connect this herb to the archive.

Herb identity

Common name: elder
Latin name: Sambucus nigra(candidate)
Identity note: Elder also means older or senior, so botanical context is important.

Safety

moderate

Raw leaves, bark, and unripe berries can be toxic; elderflower and elderberry belong to separate preparation contexts.

Historical archive citations are not medical advice. Use modern clinical and poison-control sources for ingestion, dosage, pregnancy, and toxicity questions.

NCCIH Herbs at a Glance: Raw leaves, bark, and unripe berries can be toxic; elderflower and elderberry belong to separate preparation contexts.

Aliases

elderelder flowerselder-flowerselderflowerSambucus nigra

Elder in Historical Sources

Curated archive synthesis of recurring uses, recipes, rituals, and interpretive problems.

Hermetikon's curated reading of Elder (Sambucus nigra) is built from 3 source-linked archive notes and 2 preparation or ritual-use entries. The strongest recurring contexts are medicine, preparations, and folk magic. Each note below links back to the archive source used for the claim.

Medicine

high

Culpeper uses elder flowers in a distilled water with nightshade for hot agues, inflammations, St. Anthony's fire, and heat-related swellings.

Culpeper's Complete Herbal | Nicholas Culpeper | 1653

Chapter 10

Preparation

high

Hill gives a direct oil of elder preparation: elder flowers are boiled in olive oil until crisp and then strained off.

The Family Herbal | John Hill | 1755

Page 46

Folk magic

high

Frazer records elder-flower tea or wine in western Bohemia whose medicinal virtue depends on gathering the flowers on Midsummer Eve.

The Golden Bough | James George Frazer | 1913

Chapter VIII. The Magic Flowers of Midsummer Eve.

Preparations and ritual uses

Oil of elder flowers

high

Hill's oil of elder is made by boiling elder flowers in olive oil until the flowers are crisp, then straining the oil.

The Family Herbal | John Hill | 1755

Page 46

Midsummer elder-flower drink

high

Frazer reports western Bohemian elder-flower tea or wine whose virtue depends on the flowers being gathered on Midsummer Eve.

The Golden Bough | James George Frazer | 1913

Chapter VIII. The Magic Flowers of Midsummer Eve.

Elder Archive Contexts

Compact source patterns from the extracted citation set.

Astrology

6 passages across 6 books; strongest source: A Book of Myths.

Matched as elder; medium confidence.

Folk magic

1 passage across 1 book; strongest source: The Golden Bough.

Matched as elder-flowers; high confidence.

Preparation

3 passages across 3 books; strongest source: Culpeper's Complete Herbal.

Matched as elder flowers; high confidence.

Safety

4 passages across 4 books; strongest source: Anatomy of Melancholy.

Matched as elder; medium confidence.

Elder Cited Excerpts

Representative public passages with the herb mention highlighted and linked to archive source material.

5 shown

Culpeper's Complete Herbal

Nicholas Culpeper

1653

"... for which also the dried leaves taken as tobacco, or the root is very good. The distilled water hereof simply, or with Elder flowers and Nightshade, is a singularly good remedy against all hot agues, to drink two ounces at a time, and apply cloths wet therein to the head and stomach, which also does much good, being applied to any hot swellings and inflammations: It helps St. Anthonyâ€™s fire, and burnings, and is singularly good to take away wheals and small pushes that arise through heat; as also the burning heat of the piles, or privy parts, cloths wet therein be..."

Chapter 10Open in Reader

Preparationalias: elder flowershigh confidence

King's American Dispensatory

Harvey Wickes Felter

1854

"...F QUEEN'S ROOT. Preparation. — Take of queen's root, and root of turkey corn, each, 32 troy ounct ^ ; liliu' liag root, elder flowers, and pipsissewa leaves, each, 16 troj- ounces; coriander and prickly ash berries, each, 8 troy ounces. Prepare a syrup after the manner of making Compound Syrup of Aralia, using the same menstruum and the same proportion of sugar. Make 32 pints of syrup. This syrup i,« the old Eclectic preparation that gave the reputation to this compound and served as a basis for the i)rfsrnt funuuia in the V. S. P. Action, Medical Uses, and Dosage.— ..."

Page 1020Open in Reader

Preparationalias: elder flowershigh confidence

The Family Herbal

John Hill

1755

"...quart of olive oil, and let them stand together till the oil is of a reddish colour. Oil of elder is made of a pound of elder flowers, which are to be put into a quart of olive oil, and boiled till they are crisp, and the oil is to be then strained off. - What is called the green oil, is thus made, bruise in a marble mortar three ounces of green chamomile, with the same quantity of bay leaves, sea-wormwood, rue, and sweet marjoram; then boil them in a quart of oil of olives, till they are a little crisp. The oil is then to be poured off, and when cold put up for use...."

Page 46Open in Reader

Preparationalias: elder flowershigh confidence

The Golden Bough

James George Frazer

1913

"...ildbed.[221](1168036593625754663_43433-h-22.html.xhtml#note_221) The Germans of Western Bohemia brew a tea or wine from elder-flowers, but they say that the brew has no medicinal virtue unless the flowers have been gathered on Midsummer Eve. They do say, too, that whenever you see an elder-tree, you should take off your hat.[222](1168036593625754663_43433-h-22.html.xhtml#note_222) In the Tyrol dwarf-elder serves to detect witchcraft in cattle, provided of course that the shrub has been pulled up or the branches broken on Midsummer Day.[223](1168036593625754663_43433-..."

Chapter VIII. The Magic Flowers of Midsummer Eve.Open in Reader

Folk magicalias: elder-flowershigh confidence

The Golden Bough

James George Frazer

1912

"...new which shrank, and that it is never seen in the venison exposed for sale; he did not know what they did with it. His elder brother, whom I afterwards met, told me that they eat it as a rarity; but I have also heard, though on less respectable authority, that they refrain from it, like the ancient Jews. A gentleman, who had lived on the Indian frontier, or in the nation, for ten or fifteen years, told me that he had often been surprised that the Indians always detached this sinew; but it had never occurred to him to inquire the reason.â€[764](3891211692331..."

Chapter XIV. The Propitiation of Wild Animals by Hunters.Open in Reader

Archive mentionalias: elderlow confidence

Books Mentioning Elder

Complete public source inventory, placed after the interpretive reading so the page opens with the most useful synthesis first.

32 books

Myths of the Norsemen

Anonymous | 1200

Archive Profile

Herb identity

Safety

Aliases

Elder in Historical Sources

Medicine

Preparation

Folk magic

Preparations and ritual uses

Oil of elder flowers

Midsummer elder-flower drink

Elder Archive Contexts

Astrology

Folk magic

Preparation

Safety

Elder Cited Excerpts

Culpeper's Complete Herbal

King's American Dispensatory

The Family Herbal

The Golden Bough

The Golden Bough

Related Archive Material

Related herbs

Books Mentioning Elder