Alkaloid use of Ephedra and opium poppies. Also, coca leaves have been used by South American Indians since ancient times. Extracts from plants containing toxic alkaloids, such as aconitine and tubocurarine, were used since antiquity for poisoning arrows. Studies of alkaloids began in the 19th century. In 1804, the German chemist Friedrich Sertürner isolated from opium a "soporific principle" (), which he called "morphium" in honor of Morpheus, the Greek god of dreams; in German and some other Central-European languages, this is still the name of the drug. The term "morphine", used in English and French, was given by the French
The Friend of God from the Oberland of Piers Plowman. Another theory is that Merswin had a dual personality and wrote the works ascribed to The Friend of God from the Oberland while in a dissociative state. A third hypothesis is that the works were compiled by Merswin’s secretary, Nikolaus of Löwen. On Merswin’s death, Nikolaus of Löwen came into a large collection of anonymous mystical works from the library of the Religious House of Grünenwörth, which he and Merswin had founded together, and invented the mysterious Friend of God from the Oberland as the author. The Friend of God from the Oberland The Friend of God