Field notes and materia medica
Mineral materials
Field notes on the mineral materials of Chinese medicine: what they are, how they are cleaned or processed, and where the safety questions sit.
3 field notes
Chinese herbs
Croton residue, cinnabar, and musk (巴豆霜 / 朱砂 / 麝香): processing high-risk materials
Why defatting, grinding, purification, and formula-making do not make toxic or restricted materials suitable for home use.
Read the article
Chinese herbs
Zuo Tai mercury preparation (佐太): a specialist mineral process, not a household medicine
How a Tibetan mercury-containing preparation is produced through controlled stages and why mercury exposure remains a central safety concern.
Read the article
Chinese herbs
Gypsum (石膏): mining, crushing, and distinguishing a mineral medicine
How medicinal gypsum is obtained from mineral deposits, cleaned, crushed, and kept distinct from calcined material and construction products.
Read the article
Tell us what you would like help with
It takes a couple of minutes. Nothing is booked and nothing is charged — a person reads it and writes back within 24 hours.