Title
Sparteine Sulphate (Poison) — E. Lilly & Co., with Owl Drug Co. label (Oakland, CA)
Author
Manufacturer: Eli Lilly & Company
Retailer: The Owl Drug Co., 4029 Piedmont Ave., Oakland, California
Image
Description
Amber glass pharmacy bottle of Sparteine Sulphate tablets, labeled POISON, No. 1302, 1 grain (≈0.065 g) tablets.
Front label carries the classic Lilly script; a side label shows The Owl Drug Co. (4029 Piedmont Ave., Oakland).
Cork-lined metal cap; tablets are small, round, and buff-colored.
What it was: Sparteine is a quinolizidine alkaloid from broom (Genista/Ulex) once used as a cardiac antiarrhythmic and oxytocic. It fell from favor due to narrow therapeutic index, unpredictable potency, and toxicity.
Condition
Very good for age: strong amber color, readable labels with minor edge wear, oxidation on cap, tablets intact. No cracks or chips observed. Standard age-related dusting inside cap and light label toning.
Gallery
Historical context
By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, sparteine salts were stocked for managing irregular heart rhythms and, historically, to stimulate uterine contractions. Safer and more reliable agents (e.g., quinidine, later lidocaine and modern class I/III antiarrhythmics) rendered it obsolete. Poison labeling reflects the era’s heightened caution with potent alkaloids.
Curious Facts, Ephemera, and Trivia
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1 grain = about 65 mg — handy conversion when reading antique tablet strengths.
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Owl Drug was a West Coast chain famous for its owl logo and soda fountains — this bottle’s side label anchors it to their Oakland shop on Piedmont Ave.
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Botanical source: the common broom plant. Picturesque, yes — great idea for landscaping? Not so much.
Excerpt
“Once a go-to alkaloid for arrhythmias, now a museum piece with a poison label — a tidy summary of 20th-century pharmacology growing up.”
Why it is in the Cabinet
This hits my sweet spot: legit pharmacy stock, a clean POISON flag, and a crossover between a major manufacturer (Lilly) and a classic West Coast chain (Owl Drug). It tells the story of how cardiology left risky botanicals behind.
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