Dioscorides' Plants, Then and Now
ἀνθεμίς

German chamomile

Matricaria chamomilla L. · Asteraceae
Identification: DisputedNot endemic to GreeceConservation status not assessed
Risk rank
16 of 32 (12–16)
Risk score
0.30(0.30–0.30)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
Matricaria chamomilla
Sprengel, K. 1830. Pedanii Dioscoridis Anazarbei De materia medica libri quinque, tomus secundus (Commentarius in Dioscoridem), Medicorum Graecorum Opera vol. 26, Leipzig, Comm. lib. III cap. CXLIV, p. 559 (anthemis = three species by ray colour; Sibthorp: Anthemis chia, A. tinctoria, A. rosea; Lobel: Matricaria chamomilla / Anthemis nobilis for the white-rayed kind) and cap. CXLV, p. 560 (Sprengel himself identifies παρθένιον, Wellmann III 138, as Matricaria chamomilla)
Alternative
Anthemis chia L.
Sibthorp per Sprengel, K. 1830. Pedanii Dioscoridis Anazarbei De materia medica libri quinque, tomus secundus (Commentarius in Dioscoridem), Medicorum Graecorum Opera vol. 26, Leipzig, p. 559
Alternative
Anthemis tinctoria L. (= Cota tinctoria)
Sibthorp per Sprengel, K. 1830. Pedanii Dioscoridis Anazarbei De materia medica libri quinque, tomus secundus (Commentarius in Dioscoridem), Medicorum Graecorum Opera vol. 26, Leipzig, p. 559
Alternative
Anthemis rosea Sibth. & Sm.
Sibthorp per Sprengel, K. 1830. Pedanii Dioscoridis Anazarbei De materia medica libri quinque, tomus secundus (Commentarius in Dioscoridem), Medicorum Graecorum Opera vol. 26, Leipzig, p. 559
Alternative
Anthemis nobilis L. (= Chamaemelum nobile)
Lobel per Sprengel, K. 1830. Pedanii Dioscoridis Anazarbei De materia medica libri quinque, tomus secundus (Commentarius in Dioscoridem), Medicorum Graecorum Opera vol. 26, Leipzig, p. 559
Alternative
Anacyclus aureus (yellow kind)
Lobel per Sprengel, K. 1830. Pedanii Dioscoridis Anazarbei De materia medica libri quinque, tomus secundus (Commentarius in Dioscoridem), Medicorum Graecorum Opera vol. 26, Leipzig, p. 559

Then and now

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

The plant
ἀνθεμίς
Photograph of Matricaria chamomilla
Photo: Alvesgaspar · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons (photo of German chamomile)
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 III · ch. 137c. 50–70 CE
ἀνθεμίς
anthemis (syn. chamaimēlon)
ἀνθεμίς· οἱ δὲ λευκάνθεμον, οἱ δὲ ἠράνθεμον, ἐπεὶ ἔαρος ἀνθεῖ, οἱ δὲ χαμαίμηλον διὰ τὴν πρὸς τὰ μῆλα ὁμοιότητα τῆς ὀσμῆς …
Modern identification
Matricaria chamomillaL. · AsteraceaeDisputed

Source: Sprengel, K. 1830. Pedanii Dioscoridis Anazarbei De materia medica libri quinque, tomus secundus (Commentarius in Dioscoridem), Medicorum Graecorum Opera vol….

Full citation and quoted evidence

Sprengel, K. 1830. Pedanii Dioscoridis Anazarbei De materia medica libri quinque, tomus secundus (Commentarius in Dioscoridem), Medicorum Graecorum Opera vol. 26, Leipzig, Comm. lib. III cap. CXLIV, p. 559 (anthemis = three species by ray colour; Sibthorp: Anthemis chia, A. tinctoria, A. rosea; Lobel: Matricaria chamomilla / Anthemis nobilis for the white-rayed kind) and cap. CXLV, p. 560 (Sprengel himself identifies παρθένιον, Wellmann III 138, as Matricaria chamomilla)

Opening words of the chapter (Wellmann numbering). Edition: Wellmann 1906-1914 (vol. I 1907, vol. II 1906), Berlin: Weidmann; transcribed by eye from the archive.org page scan (Wellmann's ϑ glyph rendered as θ; no emendation). See the page scan.

Modern official status

European Medicines Agency herbal monograph

Matricariae flos; Matricariae aetheroleum · category: traditional

We report regulatory status only and make no claim about effects. Read the monograph for its exact wording.

Open the monograph on ema.europa.eu

Projected range change by 2050

2050 · moderate (SSP2-4.5)+65% (+61 to +71%)
2050 · high (SSP5-8.5)+75% (+69 to +79%)

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 moderate9,565 km² (8,335–10,505 km²)

Risk score breakdown

0.30 (0.30–0.30)Moderate risk class 2
00.51.0
  • Range loss 0.00 of max 0.40 · (0.00–0.00)
  • Endemism 0.00 of max 0.20 · not endemic
  • Conservation status 0.10 of max 0.20 · not assessed
  • Harvest pressure 0.20 of max 0.20

Stays in the top 10 in 2% 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)
0.78 ± 0.02
Distance-only baseline AUC
0.71 ours is higher
Boyce index
0.98 ± 0.01
TSS
0.46 ± 0.02
Occurrence records
1,154 after cleaning (of 1,390)

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

Cultivation opportunity

Climate-resilient candidate crop; cultivation can take pressure off wild collection. Resolve the identification first.

Rule: Gains or keeps habitat · has a 2050 cultivation zone.

Where it could be grown

Identification through time

Who has matched ἀνθεμίς 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 Matricaria chamomilla L., which may not be the plant Dioscorides meant.

Range data (map alternative)

ScenarioSuitable ~10 km cellsChangeShare in Natura 2000
Now1129—21.4%
2050 moderate1,648 (1,614–1,687)+65% (+61 to +71%)23% (23–24%)
2050 high1,696 (1,656–1,719)+75% (+69 to +79%)24% (24–24%)