What is the history wild lettuce?

The story of wild lettuce as a magical plant goes all the way into pre-history. Some of the earliest record we have of this in mythology goes back to the ancient Sumerian tales of Dumiz. One hymn to this ancient god contains the verse "Vigorously he sprouted! Him being lettuce!". Sprouting lettuce is a feature of many ancient stories involving fertility. These stories changed over time and cultures and included the ancient Egyptian god Min, and the Greek god Adonis. In fact, recent discoveries at Gobleki Tepe in Turkey show that this myth is far older than even the ancient Sumerians.

Wild lettuce was used by ancient Egyptian physicians, later scribed in Arab materia medica texts that were picked up by the ancient Greeks and Romans. By the end of the 1700's doctors had begun experimenting with the best methods to produce medicines from wild lettuces. In modern history, the nearly century long lactucarium industry lasted until about the 1920's. Most of the world's supply of lactucarium came from France and Germany, but it was also grown in the United States. Modern pharmaceuticals took the place of lactucarium as a medicine with painkillers such as aspirin, acetaminophen, and ibuprofen.