Chinese Materia Dietetica, Ming: Grain-jar water

Illustration of 'grain jar water' from Shiwu bencao (Materia dietetica), a dietetic herbal in four volumes dating from the Ming period (1368-1644). The identity of the author and artists is unknown. It contains entries on over 300 medicinal substances and is illustrated by almost 500 paintings in colour. A grain jar (liangying) was a tomb vessel with a wide body and narrow neck, and 'grain-jar water' was water accumulated in such as vessel. The illustration shows two men collecting water from a grain jar at an ancestral grave. The text states: Grain-jar water is pungent in flavour, neutral and slightly poisonous. It is used to treat pain in the heart and abdomen due to infeatation with ghost Qi (zhugui qi). One ge (c. decilitre) should be drunk at a time; if drunk in larger quantities, it causes sensations of oppression in the heart (xin men). According to one theory, if one bathes one's eyes in grain-jar water, one will be able to see ghosts emerging from the grain jar

Grain-jar water (liangying shui)