Outdated Herbal Remedies

15 Points Per Correct Answer - No time limit  

1. Do unsightly facial freckles leave you too embarrassed to appear in public? What you need is elaterium. By smearing this concoction on your face before going out in sunlight, your freckles will disappear in no time. The Romans obtained elaterium from the seeds of a wild variety of which common salad green? Cucumber Tomato Lettuce Avocado

2. Are you concerned that new health and safety laws might leave you culpable of the deaths of your employees? Remember, prevention is better than the cure, so before they begin their day's labour, ensure your workers apply the juice of a radish to their skin and you will have an incident-free working day. This preventative measure was recommended to those who typically handled what? Sewage Vestal Virgins Togas Snakes

3. Are you fed up with wasting your hard-earned sesterces on sitting at the public latrines but not being able to evacuate the bowel? What you need is a 'spear' or two to help loosen those stubborn stools; it's not as painful as it sounds. Rather than a deadly weapon, what vegetable is alluded to here as being beneficial in encouraging a bowel movement? Asparagus Broccoli Parsnip Spinach

4. Are you having problems of a personal and delicate nature? Onions, rocket and pine-nuts are what you need to remedy this according to the Roman poet Ovid in his work 'Ars Amatoria.' Ovid wrote that these foods all shared the same quality of being what? Diuretics Deodorants Emetics Aphrodisiacs

5. Do cold winter nights chill you to the bone and deprive you of a sound night's sleep? Perhaps you should try urtification, the process that has been trialed and proven effective in warming the body by scores of Roman legions. Urtification involved rubbing what onto the body to warm it? Chilli seeds Ginger roots Hot mustard Stinging nettles

6. Are you one of those lily-livered cowards that jump at the sight of their own shadow? A mouthful of parsley will make a braver person of you, ready to face your worst enemies. Because it was believed to induce courage in a person, parsley was allegedly eaten by whom before facing their foe? Unfaithful husbands Unpopular consuls Tax collectors Gladiators

7. Are you a new mother with a hungry mouth to feed? The next time you make hummus, don't throw away the broth. You'll produce more food than your baby can stomach if you drink it instead. The water that was used to cook what was said to increase lactation in women? Chickpeas Pasta Potatoes Cabbage

8. Do people turn and walk the other way when they see you approach rather than stop and talk to you? The leaves of the myrtle and mastic trees along with Syrian gall-nuts will mask that putrid smell you exude. These ingredients were recommended for what particular type of body odour? Foot odour Underarm odour Excessive flatulence Halitosis

9. Does a long day sitting in the sun at the Circus Maximus leave you with a splitting headache? This can be remedied by applying the foliage taken from this particular tree. The leaves from which tree were used to cure migraine brought on by exposure to the sun? Norfolk Island pine Japanese maple Cypress English box

10. So, you think you have what it takes to cure your family of all their ills and ailments? Still, it wouldn't hurt for you to purchase 'De Materia Medica', the Roman guide to personal health and wellbeing, just to be sure you are prescribing the right remedies. Who was it that wrote the ancient text 'De Materia Medica' in the first century? Gaius Valerius Catullus Pedanius Dioscorides Procopius of Caesarea Charlatanus Quackius