Article Figures & Data
Figures
- Figure 1.
Peyote is a spineless, blue-green cactus native to northern Mexico and the Southern United States, used traditionally by Indigenous peoples for ceremonial purposes. Due to the alkaloid mescaline it contains, it has a hallucinogenic effect when consumed. It’s scientifically classified as Lophophora williamsii. Shown are nine of the dried “buttons.” American Institute of the History of Pharmacy, George Bender Collection.
- Figure 2.
A reprint of Briggs’s column detailing his experience ingesting the “Muscale buttons,” later known as peyote, appeared in The Druggist’s Bulletin in May 1887. In Briggs’s recount of his harrowing experience, he reported dizziness, an elevated pulse, and rapid breathing. This column caught the eye of Parke-Davis Co., a major Detroit-based pharmaceutical company. American Institute of the History of Pharmacy, George Bender Collection.
- Figure 3.
Briggs’s June 8, 1887 letter to Parke-Davis recounts his experiences attempting to secure more buttons for the pharmaceutical company to study. American Institute of the History of Pharmacy, George Bender Collection.
- Figure 4.
In a July 19, 1887, letter, botanist Serrano Watson from Harvard identifies the buttons as belonging to the genus Anhalonium, “of which five species are known in Mexico.” American Institute of the History of Pharmacy, George Bender Collection.
- Figure 5.
Parke-Davis Co. sent a few buttons to A. Blanc for an opinion about the plant’s origin. Blanc wrote back on July 13, 1888, that they believed the plant was Anhalonium williamsii, rather than a whole new species as Lewin and Henning claimed. American Institute of the History of Pharmacy, George Bender Collection.
- Figure 6.
Parke-Davis Co. reached out to a variety of cactus and ornamental plant dealers to secure more buttons to study. One, Anna B. Nickels, wrote to them in May 1888 and provided the buttons for $4 per pound later that year. Shown on the top is an address label from Nickels in Laredo, Texas, to Parke-Davis in Detroit, Michigan, from May 29, 1888. Shown on the bottom is a memo for H. Wetzel, a Parke-Davis employee, from October 18, 1888. American Institute of the History of Pharmacy, George Bender Collection.
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