Mandrake

דודאים , Gen 30:14-16; Son 7:13. Interpreters have wasted much time and pains in endeavouring to ascertain what is intended by the Hebrew word dudaim. Some translate it by “violet,” others, “lilies,” “jasmines,” “truffle or mushroom,” and some think that the word means “flowers,” or “fine flowers,” in general. Bochart, Calmet, and Sir Thomas Browne, suppose the citron intended; Celsius is persuaded that it is the fruit of the lote tree; Hiller, that cherries are spoken of; and Ludolf maintains that it is the fruit which the Syrians call mauz, resembling in figure and taste the Indian fig; but the generality of interpreters and commentators understand by dudaim, mandrakes, a species of melon; and it is so rendered in the Septuagint, and in both the

Targums, in Gen 30:14. It appears from Scripture, that they were in perfection about the time of wheat harvest, have an agreeable odour, may be preserved, and are placed with pomegranates. Hasselquist, the pupil and intimate friend of Linnaeus; who travelled into the Holy Land to make discoveries in natural history, imagines that the plant commonly called mandrake, is intended. Speaking of Nazareth, in Galilee, he says, “What I found most remarkable at this village was the great number of mandrakes which grew in a vale below it. I had not the pleasure to see this plant in blossom, the fruit now (May 5th, O. S.) hanging ripe on the stem, which lay withered on the ground. From the season in which this mandrake blossoms and ripens fruit, one may form a conjecture that it was Rachel’s dudaim. These were brought her in the wheat harvest, which in Galilee is in the month of May, about this time, and the mandrake was now in fruit.

Fig. 250—Mandrake—Atropa Mandragora

This word only occurs in two places of Scripture; first in Gen 30:14-16; and secondly, in Son 7:13. From the notices given in these passages of their qualities it is evident that mandrakes were collected in the fields, that they were fit for gathering in the wheat harvest in Mesopotamia, where the first occurrence took place; that they were found in Palestine; that they or the plants which yielded them diffused a peculiar odor, and that they were supposed to be possessed of aphrodisiac powers, or of assisting in producing conception.

The plant referred to is probably mandragora. ’At the village of St. John in the mountains,’ says Mariti, ’about six miles south-west from Jerusalem, this plant is found at present, as well as in Tuscany. It grows low, like lettuce, to which its leaves have a strong resemblance, except that they have a dark green color. The flowers are purple, and the root is for the most part forked. The fruit, when ripe in the beginning of May, is of the size and color of a small apple, exceedingly ruddy, and of a most agreeable odor; our guide thought us fools for suspecting it to be unwholesome.’ Maundrell was informed by the chief priest of the Samaritans that it was still noted for its genial virtue. Hasselquist also seems inclined to consider this the plant referred to, for, when at Nazareth, he says, ’what I found most remarkable in their villages was the great quantity of mandrakes that grew in a vale below it. The fruit was now (May 16) ripe. From the season in which this mandrake blossoms and ripens its fruit, one might form a conjecture that it is Rachel’s dudaim(mandrakes). These were brought her in the wheat harvest, which in Galilee is in the month of May, about this time, and the mandrake was now in fruit.’

MANDRAKE (dûdâ’îm, Gen 30:14 f., Son 7:13; RVm [Note: Revised Version margin.] ‘love apples,’ cf. root dôdîm, ‘love’).—Although other plants have been suggested, the mandrake (Mandragora officinarum), of the Solanaceœ or Potato order, is most probable. It is a common plant in all parts of S. Palestine. Its long and branched root is very deeply imbedded in the earth, and an old superstition survives to-day that he who digs it up will be childless—but at the same time the effort of pulling it up will cure a bad lumbago. When the last fibres give way and the root comes up a semi-human scream is supposed to be emitted (cf. also Jos. [Note: Josephus.] BJ VII. vi. 3). Occasionally the root resembles a human figure, but most of those exhibited have been ‘doctored’ to heighten the resemblance. The leaves are dark green, arranged in a rosette, and the flowers dark purple. The fruit, which ripens about May, about the time of the wheat harvest, is somewhat like a small tomato, and orange or reddish in colour: it is called by the natives baid el-jinn, ‘the eggs of the jinn.’ It has a heavy narcotic smell and sweetish taste. It is still used medicinally, but is known to be poisonous, especially the seeds. The mandrake was known to the ancients as an aphrodisiac (see p. 569^b).

E. W. G. Masterman.

Mandrake. A fruit-producing plant with dark green leaves and small bluish-purple flowers. The mandrake is a relative of the potato family which grew abundantly throughout Palestine and the Mediterranean region.

The yellow fruit of the mandrake was small, sweet-tasting, and fragrant. It had narcotic qualities and may have been used medicinally. The fruit of the mandrake was also referred to as the "love apple." It was considered a love potion.