Dioscorides' Plants, Then and Now
ἄρκευθος

Prickly juniper (eastern)

Juniperus deltoides R.P.Adams · Cupressaceae
Identification: DisputedNot endemic to GreeceConservation status not assessed
Risk rank
8 of 32 (5–9)
Risk score
0.38(0.36–0.39)2 · Moderate
Identification disputed. Scholars propose more than one modern species. We model the most cited candidate and show the alternative for comparison. Rankings are also reported without disputed plants on the Methods page. See how its rank changes under each alternative identification.
Modelled
Juniperus deltoides
Wellmann (ed.) 1907, DMM I 75: "ἄρκευθος· ἡ μέν τίς ἐστι μεγάλη ἡ δὲ μικρά" (large and small kinds; RV: Ῥωμαῖοι ζουνιπέρουμ); Osbaldeston 2000 ch. 1-103 suggests Juniperus excelsa and J. communis.
Alternative
Juniperus communis L.
Osbaldeston 2000, ch. 1-103
Alternative
Juniperus excelsa M.Bieb.
Osbaldeston 2000, ch. 1-103
Alternative
Juniperus macrocarpa Sm.
not verified (LSJ/DGE pages blocked)

Then and now

2050 · moderate emissions. SSP2-4.5, 2041-2060, 3 climate models; ranges show the spread.

The plant
ἄρκευθος
Photograph of Juniperus deltoides
Juniperus deltoides, one of the species pooled for this plant. Photo: Holger Krisp · CC BY 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons (photo of Prickly juniper (eastern))
2050 · moderate emissions
Natural Earth (PD) · model output · ~10 km cells
Loading map layers (0 of 1)
Layers
Range keptLost by 2050Gained by 2050Cultivation zoneNatura 2000Occurrence cellCells ≈ 10 × 10 km

Occurrences are aggregated to ~10 km cells; exact points are never published. View range data as a table

De Materia Medica · Book I · ch. 75c. 50–70 CE
ἄρκευθος
arkeuthos
ἄρκευθος· ἠ μέν τῖς ἐστι μεγάλη ἡ δὲ μικρά. ἀμφότεραι δὲ θερμαίνουσι καὶ λεπτύνουσι· εἰσὶ δὲ καὶ οὐρητικαί …
Modern identification
Juniperus deltoidesR.P.Adams · CupressaceaeDisputed

J. oxycedrus s.str. is absent from Greece (Dimopoulos et al. 2013; WCVP); Greek plants are J. deltoides, still filed as J. oxycedrus in many GBIF records, so both names are pooled. Source: Osbaldeston 2000.

Full citation and quoted evidence

Wellmann (ed.) 1907, DMM I 75: "ἄρκευθος· ἡ μέν τίς ἐστι μεγάλη ἡ δὲ μικρά" (large and small kinds; RV: Ῥωμαῖοι ζουνιπέρουμ); Osbaldeston 2000 ch. 1-103 suggests Juniperus excelsa and J. communis.

Opening words of the chapter (Wellmann numbering). Edition: Wellmann 1906-1914 (Weidmann, Berlin), public domain; digitised by First1KGreek (Harvard/Leipzig, CC BY-SA 4.0), urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0656.tlg001.1st1K-grc1. See the page scan.

No European Medicines Agency herbal monograph recorded for this species.

Projected range change by 2050

2050 · moderate (SSP2-4.5)−23% (−16 to −25%)
2050 · high (SSP5-8.5)−27% (+6 to −35%)

Median and spread across 3 climate models. Whisker axis −80% to +20%, dashed tick at 0; a chevron means the value runs beyond the axis.

Suitable cultivation area, 2050 moderate0 km² (0–0 km²)

Risk score breakdown

0.38 (0.36–0.39)Moderate risk class 2
00.51.0
  • Range loss 0.09 of max 0.40 · (0.06–0.10)
  • Endemism 0.00 of max 0.20 · not endemic
  • Conservation status 0.10 of max 0.20 · not assessed
  • Harvest pressure 0.19 of max 0.20

Stays in the top 10 in 98% of 1,000 random weightings.

How the score is built, and how sensitive it is to weights

Model quality

Standard grade
AUC (spatial block CV)
0.77 ± 0.03
Distance-only baseline AUC
0.66 ours is higher
Boyce index
0.23 ± 0.32
TSS
0.48 ± 0.06
Occurrence records
294 after cleaning (of 386)

5-fold spatial block cross-validation (~25 km blocks); ± is one standard deviation across folds. Null model AUC 0.50. The baseline scores each held-out point by its distance to the nearest training record, on the same folds. "Standard" grade means ≥ 30 records, AUC ≥ 0.75 and above the baseline; fewer than 10 records is a data gap; anything else is low grade.

Suggested action

Protect: no cultivation fallback

Prioritise in-situ protection and seed banking; no suitable farmland found. Resolve the identification first.

Rule: Loses habitat in all 3 climate models · no 2050 cultivation zone.

See the action plan

Identification through time

Who has matched ἄρκευθος to which modern plant, from the Renaissance to today.

All names through time
Cited for the identification we modelProposed an alternativeAlternative preferred by our sourceAlternative rejected by our sourceCommonly proposed, not verified by us
Renaissance commentators
Linnaean botany & Flora Graeca
Edition
Modern
150016001700180019002000

Select a mark to read who proposed which plant, and the source we read it in.

Dates are each authority's main herbal or commentary (approximate, "c."), used to order the timeline. Claims are parsed from our curated identification table; every quote links back to a page scan or edition on the plant page.

Caveats

  • Identification is disputed; results describe Juniperus deltoides R.P.Adams, which may not be the plant Dioscorides meant.
  • J. oxycedrus s.str. is absent from Greece (Dimopoulos et al. 2013; WCVP); Greek plants are J. deltoides, still filed as J. oxycedrus in many GBIF records, so both names are pooled.

Range data (map alternative)

ScenarioSuitable ~10 km cellsChangeShare in Natura 2000
Now805—31.2%
2050 moderate658 (639–668)−23% (−16 to −25%)34% (33–34%)
2050 high612 (595–795)−27% (+6 to −35%)34% (32–35%)