Botanical Name

Synsepalum dulcificum (Schumach. & Thonn.) Daniell [Sapotaceae]

Specimen Type

Herbarium Sheet [Preserved Specimen]

Collector

Peter Thonning

Collection Date-s

1799 – 1803

Collection Location

Aquapim [Ghana]

Colonial Context

Danish Gold Coast of Africa 1663–2088

Annotations Determinations and Type Specimen Status

On sheet: HB. HORN. e Guinea d. Dom. Thonning

On label: 907 Bumelia dulcifica n: sp: Frugten har den besynderlighed saaledes at illudere smagen
at alt hvad som nydes endog saa ?? til 2 Tiimer derefter bliver ganske soedt.

IDC microfiche foto: Isert et Thonning nr. 12 I 1-2

Remark: The data on the locality is taken from Hepper F.N. (1976) The West African Herbaria of Isert and Thonning

Bumelia dulcifica Schumach. and Thonn. SYNTYPE. Beskr. Guineiske Pl.: 130 (1827)

Ownership and Collection Management History

Thonning 168; ex herb. Jens W. Hornemann

Common Names

Tahmi [Schumacher/Thonning]

Historical Cultural and Traditional Knowledge

[Hepper (1976) p. 117:] "The berries are only slightly pulpy and have hardly any taste; but the special peculiarity of betraying the taste so that after having eaten two or three berries everything tastes sweet; so that a lemon tastes like an orange; vinegar like sweet wine etc. If one eats about a score of berries in the morning the taste is retained in the mouth for nearly the whole day. As palm wine (toddy) ferments so quickly that it can only be brought with difficulty about 5 miles from Aquapim to the coast towns without becoming sour the wine merchants usually bring with them some of these berries; whereby the wine lovers at first please the palate and then intoxication from the sour wine follows."

Source

Herbarium C NHMD

NHMD Herbarium C Catalogue Number

C10003429

C10003429

Copyright Owner

Natural History Museum of Denmark

Copyright License

CC BY 4.0 (images) and CC0 (metadata)