There are over 400 species of holly on our planet, all of which grow as trees or shrubs. As a whole, the Ilex species is evergreen (although there are some deciduous varieties) and features simple leaves, single or clustered small flowers and red, black or yellow berries. All Ilex species require a relatively wet and equable climate, and are found in those environments throughout the world.
Phylogenetic studies of hollies suggests that the history of the plant is very complex, and established relationships between North and South American types, and Asian and South American varieties are very ancient indeed (Tertiary period or greater). While ilexes were probably not domesticated prehistorically, information concerning their use in ritual contexts may well have been communicated prehistorically between South and North America.
Uses for Holly
The most varieties of Ilex are found in Asia, where China alone boasts a whopping 112 different species; Central and South America is close behind, with Brazil holding 60 species. Modern uses for the wood of the holly plant is as marquetry or inlay in cabinet making; and the decorative berries and leaves are used as significant elements to various religious ceremonies associated with Winter Solstice celebrations such as Christmas. Holly is grown as an ornamental hedge in many places, with at least 17 cultivars marketed commercially.
But the primary use of holly prehistorically and today (and why we talk about it in archaeology) is for its pharmacological properties. The major reactive components of holly are methylxanthines: all holly species include varying amounts of caffeine, theobromine, theophylline and adenine.
Ilex is one of several plants which are sources of methylxanthines, including coffee, tea and chocolate. Several species, including I. vomitoria and I. guayusa, were used prehistorically and historically in a tea (black drink) which was made from toasted leaves and twigs. Black drink was consumed by select men in great quantities before embarking on long hunting trips. These rituals included vomiting after the hyper-consumption, which physiologically reduced caffeine levels, and alleviated the stomach aches, headaches and dizzy spells brought about by drinking too much caffeine.
The use of holly species in ritual contexts is documented, or at least suggested, by the presence of leaves, plant residues and iconography, in South America as early as the 5th century AD; and in North America perhaps as early as 500 BC.
Caffeine and Holly
Caffeine is the world's most frequently consumed psychoactive substance: and some of the Ilex species contain much larger quantities than others. Traditional medicinal uses for caffeine-rich Ilex in Asia include treatments for drowsiness, headache remedies, weight loss, respiratory diseases; they are documented to have positive effects on cognitive functions. Overuse of caffeine can create anxiety, diarrhea, nausea and vomiting, hypertension, insomnia and tremors.
American Ilexes
- Ilex vomitoria Aiton (Yaupon, cassina) grows to eight meters tall; ratio of caffeine to theobromine of 5:1
- I. cassine L. (Dahoon) southeast coastal area from Virginia to Teas, Veracruz and the Bahamas, Cuba, Puerto Rico, grows to 13 m high; caffeine to theobromine ratio 1:2
- I. paraguariensis St. Hil., indigenous to Brazil and Paraguay, used to make yerba maté tea, cultivated by Jesuit missionaries in the 17th century, as a stimulant and diuretic
- I. tarapotina Loes., teo mate
- I. guayusa Loes., from Ecuador and Peru, guayusa, used as a stimulant and purgative by Achuar and other groups
Asian Ilexes
- Ilex pubescenes, a traditional Chinese medicine used for the treatment of coronary heart disease, hypertension and hepatitis and has anti-inflammatory, analgesic and anti-pyretic properties
- I. cornuta, traditional Chinese, treatment of dizziness and hypertension, malarial fever
- I. aquifolium fevers and rheumatisms
- I. opaca, diuretic, tonic, purgative and cardiac stimulant
Black Drink
According to early European invaders into North America, black drink tea was likely mixed from one or more of the American species by different Mississippian groups. The tea was readily adopted by European settlers, who called it cassina or cacina, Carolina tea or Appalachina tea, when it was imported to France. A form of black tea was used by the Southern Confederacy during the Civil War as a replacement for coffee when trade shipments were blockaded. Broad based consumption of Ilex tea in the world plummeted in the late 19th century, although yerba maté, grown from I. paraguariensis, is growing in popularity.
Sources
Alikaridis F. 1987. Natural constituents of Ilex species. Journal of Ethnopharmacology 20(2):121-144.
Crown PL, Emerson TE, Gu J, Hurst WJ, Pauketat TR, and Ward T. 2012. Ritual black drink consumption at Cahokia. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 109(35):13944-13949.
Havard V. 1896. Drink Plants of the North American Indians. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 23(2):33-46.
Lewis WH, Kennelly EJ, Bass GN, Wedner HJ, Elvin-Lewis MP, and W DF. 1991. Ritualistic use of the holly Ilex guayusa by Amazonian Jivaro Indians. Journal of Ethnopharmacology 33(1-2):25-30.
Manen JF, Boulter MC, and Naciri-Graven Y. 2002. The complex history of the genus Ilex L. (Aquifoliaceae): Evidence from the comparison of plastid and nuclear DNA sequences and from fossil data. Plant Systematics and Evolution 235(1-4):79-98.
McClatchey WC, Mahady GB, Bennett BC, Shiels L, and Savo V. 2009. Ethnobotany as a pharmacological research tool and recent developments in CNS-active natural products from ethnobotanical sources. Pharmacology & Therapeutics 123(2):239-254.
Noratto GD, Kim Y, Talcott ST, and Mertens-Talcott SU. 2011. Flavonol-rich fractions of yaupon holly leaves (Ilex vomitoria, Aquifoliaceae) induce microRNA-146a and have anti-inflammatory and chemopreventive effects in intestinal myofribroblast CCD-18Co cells. Fitoterapia 82(4):557-569.
Palumbo M, Putz F, and Talcott S. 2007. Nitrogen fertilizer and gender effects on the secondary metabolism of yaupon, a caffeine-containing North American holly. Oecologia 151(1):1-9.
Palumbo M, Talcott S, and Putz F. 2009. Ilex Vomitoria Ait. (Yaupon): A Native North American Source of a Caffeinated and Antioxidant-Rich Tea. Economic Botany 63(2):130-137.
Reber EA, and Kerr MT. 2012. The persistence of caffeine in experimentally produced black drink residues. Journal of Archaeological Science 39(7):2312-2319.
