The Bilak Tree (Aegle Marmelos)
My plant of investigation is Aegle marmelos, also known as the Bilac or Bael tree. In The Ambonese Herbal, Rumphius classifies the Bilac tree as 3 closely related species: bilac carbau/carbou, bilac telloor, and bilac pissang (Rumphius 1692 and Beekman 2011). E.D. Merrill’s classification, which is the one commonly adapted today, collapses these 3 species into 1 species: Aegle marmelos (Merrill 1917). Western classifications of this plant in India often refer to it as “Bael”.
Local Uses
The Bilac tree is not native to Amboina. It is native to India, but at the time of Rumphius’ writing, seemed to be quite common in many different south-east Asian islands. Different islands had slightly different uses for the plant. For example, “the Javanese and Balinese eat the raw fruit [of Bilac Telloor] with gusto, but our nation [Amboina] does not find it quite so agreeable” (Rumphius 1692 and Beekman 2011, 506). The Ambonese people roasted the fruit of the Bilac Telloor plant ashes in order to decrease the sliminess and strong flavors of the fruit. Bilac Caribou, another species of the “Bilac” category, was not eaten very often in Amboina, and was instead used to poison fish. However, it was eaten in Java and Ceylon (modern day Sri Lanka) (Rumphius 1692 and Beekman 2011, 509).
Medicinal Properties
Rumphius mentions the work of botanist “Jacob. Bont.”, who noted this plant’s (which he refers to as “Malum Cydonium Indicum” or “Slymappels”) medicinal properties (Rumphius 1692 and Beekman 2011, 506). The sap can be used to combat thrush, while the roasted fruit can be used to treat dysentery and chlorea. In more recent years, these observations have been verified through biomedical studies. In addition to combatting thrush, cholera, and dysentery, studies have also identified Aegle marmelos as having anti-diarrheal, pro-digestant, anti-inflammatory, anti-parasitic, and anti-anclyostomiasis properties (Buenz et al. 2005).
Illustrations
E.D. Merrill, who interpreted The Ambonese Herbal in 1917, makes several observations about the text’s illustrations – which, it is important to note – were ultimately not done by Rumphius, as he had become blind during the production of the final draft. He had done original drawings for earlier versions, but those were destroyed in a fire (Buenz et al. 2005). First, flowers and fruit (among other parts of particular interest to European botanists) were disproportionately large. Second, Rumphius’ classification style heavily integrated local plant relationship frameworks. The local framework put emphasis on certain key characteristics, such as leaf appearance; wood appearance; presence/absence of latex; and the taste and smell of leaves, flowers, and fruit (Merrill 1917).
The other depiction of aegle marmelos shown on this page was created by Marianne North in 1878 in India. Marianne North travelled solo around the world, which was unheard of for Victorian women of the time. Her painting style was also unconventional – she used oil paints that were thick and vibrant, as opposed to the traditional opaque watercolors (McHale 2020).
In both of these depictions of Aegle marmelos, the illustrators paid special attention to the fruit. Perhaps this is due to the practicality/usefulness of the fruit – the fruit of aegle marmelos can be eaten. From Rumphius' The Ambonese Herbal, it seems as if the other parts of aegle marmelos don't have much practical use.
However, there are also clear differences in depictions of this plant. In The Ambonese Herbal, the leaves are depicted as very scalloped along the edges, while the scallops in North's are more subdued. The illustration from The Ambonese Herbal employs shading to create dimension and mimic the way in which natural light would illuminate the plant. North's painting is the more life-like of the two. The image is created through extensive layering and blending of different colors in order to capture color complexities.
Differences in representation boil down to the fact that there are different illustrators in different cultural contexts (with different stylistic norms and ideals). The Ambonese Herbal illustrations were commissioned by the Dutch Rumphius, but drawn by Ambonese locals. As such, the illustrations in The Ambonese Herbal are likely a blend of Dutch conventions (Rumphius' instructions) and also Indonesian art styles in the 1600s. North’s image was likely informed by the culture of 1800s England. At the same time, she likely had other influences (perhaps her own innate sense of unconventionality), as her vibrant oil paintings were not considered convention in 1800s England.
WORKS CITED
Buenz, E.J., H.E. Johnson, E.M. Beekman, T.J. Motley, and B.A. Bauer. 2005. “Bioprospecting Rumphius’s Ambonese Herbal: Volume I.” Journal of Ethnopharmacology 96 (1): 57–70. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2004.08.016.Kew Science: Plants of the World Online. n.d. “Aegle Marmelos." http://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:770819-1.
McHale, Ellen. 2020. “Things You Should Know about Marianne North”. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. https://www.kew.org/read-and-watch/marianne-north-botanical-artist.
Merrill, E.D. 1917. An Interpretation of Rumphius’s Herbarium Amboinense. Bureau of Science, Manila.
Rumphius, Georgius Everhardus. 1692. The Ambonese Herbal. Translated by Eric Montague Beekman. 2011. New Haven: Yale University Press & National Tropical Botanical Garden.
