Archeological excavations dated as early as 60,000 years ago have contained remains of medicinal plants, such as opium poppies, ephedra, and cannabis.

1500 B.C. - The Ebers Papyrus in Egypt. The oldest surviving written record of medicinal plant usage.

700 B. C. - The Charaki Samhita in India documented the uses of over 300 medicinal plants.

400 B. C. - Hippocrates, the father of Western medicine, postulated that illness was a natural, not a supernatural, phenomenon.

ca. 100 A.D.- China - the Divine Husbandman's Classic defined the uses of over 250 medicinal herbs.

ca. 100 A.D.- Europe - Dioscorides publishes De Materia Medica, the first "modern" herbal; Pliny the Elder publishes Natural History.

ca. 200 A.D.- Galen, physician to the Roman Emporer Marcus Aurelius, and concepts of "the four humors" and "vital spirit" influenced European herbalism well into the 17th Century.

700s A.D. - The Golden Age of Ayurveda in India.

ca. 300 A.D. to 1000 A.D. - Classical and foreign influences decline in European herbalism; monastic "physic gardens" kept the herbal traditions alive.

1400s - Increased trade gradually leads to introduction of exotic herbs into Europe from India, China, and the New World.

ca. 1500 - Paracelsus, the first "scientific" herbalist, rejected Galen's theories in favor of the concepts of dosage, toxicity, and "active principles."

1500s - The invention of printing accelerated the codification and dissemination of herbal "folk wisdom" (cf. John Gerard's Herball published 1597; Culpeper's The English Physitian published 1652).

1500s - William Harvey's studies of the circulatory system introduced the concept of "body as machine."

1500s - The theories of René Descartes promoted the split between mind, body, and spirit and rationalism and scientific dualism grew.

Early 1900's - "Mainstream" medicine tried to distances itself from traditional herbalism; the federal government discontinued funding for naturopathic medical schools; the American Medical Association even attempted to outlaw the practice of herbalism.

1930s - Over 90% of prescription drugs in pharmacies were still derived from plants (today, over 25% are plant derivatives).

1930s - present . The search for new therapeutic compounds in nature continues. New medicines, such as taxol, vincristine, etoposide, and oral contraceptives have resulted from this search. Even now, less than 10% of plant species have been screened for new drugs.

1994 - A resurgence in the popularity of botanical medicines followed on the passage of DSHEA, the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act in response to overwhelming public demand.

DSHEA allowed botanical medicines to be sold as "dietary supplements" as long as the manufacturers didn't make any health claims. Between 1990 and 1997, the use of botanical medicines increased by 380%.

Today, botanical supplements are a $12 billion dollar industry in the U.S. alone.

There is increasing scientific evidence for the safety and efficacy of many botanical medicines especially for chronic diseases and health maintenance.

Courses in science-based herbalism and pharmacognosy have been revived in schools of pharmacy and medicine. Schools of naturopathic and holistic medicine, such as Bastyr University in Seattle, are becoming more popular.

Of course, 75- 85 % of the world's population continues to rely for primary healthcare on botanical medicines dispensed by traditional healers, as they have always done.