Photo credit: Museum of London
The picture above is of a bottle of Essence of Cinnamon and Quinine
Quinine is a derivative from the cinchona tree. The bark of the cinchona tree was used for hundreds of years before the Victorian era, but it was not until the 1800s that Quinine was isolated and was able to be injected intravenously. This ability was also mainly due to the invention of the glass syringe. Quinine was mostly used to treat and prevent malaria along with other less serious illnesses. It is not as harmful as some opiates such as cocaine and morphine, but still useful in treating the same symptoms. Due to the dangers of opiates, “Gradually, quinine and chloral replaced opiates as recommended remedies for fever and sleeplessness” (Diniejko). As the Victorians realized the dangers and addictive qualities of the stronger medicines they used these drugs as replacements.
