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HISTORICAL BACKGROUND AND TRADITION OF MEDICINAL PLANTS IN YUGOSLAVIA
The old records are the best witnesses to this long tradition.
The oldest documents of medicinal plants originate from the Middle Age.
The records about medicinal plant growing from the 8th century are kept in Slovenian monasteries.
The "Capitulars" prescribed the list of about hundred various plant species to be cultivated, most of them being used even nowdays in folk medicine, such as: sage, iris, mustard, mint, small centaury, poppy, marchmallow etc.
The archive records and museums of Dubrovnik bear witness to this long tradition in the production, processing and trade of aromatic and medicinal plants and spices.
As early as 1272 the Statutes of the Dubrovnik Republic mention the processing and trade of medicinal herbs.
It should particularly be noted that one of Europe’s oldest pharmacies was found in Dubrovnik in 1317, soon followed in 1420 by another pharmacy which still pursues its function.
Of course, the medicaments were made of medicinal herbs.
The oldest document of Serbian secular medicine originates from the 14th century.
It is "Hudok Ccodex" which cites versatile application of herbal drugs, mainly thyme, flax seed, fig roots, coriander, willow bark and other still used in various purposes.
In the middle of the 18th century Zaharije Stefanovic Orfelin first began to write the book of medical scope, "The Big Serbian Herbarium" in which he detailed the sanative effects of 500 herb species.
In "Experienced Cellarer" he listed a several hundreds of recipes for preparation of herbal wines and other potions.
The first work with scientific approach entitled "Medicinal Plants in Serbia" was published in 1883. The author was Dr.
Sava Petrovic, physician educated in France, who fully dedicated himself to pharmacognosis.
That was the impulse which the development of scientific thought