Author: Linné, Family: caryophyllaceae
Synonym: soapwort
The main constituent of the soaproot is saponin, contained in all its parts. It was used internally as an
expectorant and externally for skin troubles, but is not much used any more. Saponin can cause
stomach troubles when used internally.
The Romans used soaproot to make soap out of it.
Photo by Brother Alfred Brousseau, St. Mary's College
More about soaproot in MGMH
Text References: Washing
| CB 5, 63 |
Iza washing Ayla
Iza dug up the red-rooted pigweed and headed for a marshy area beside
sluggish backwater and found scouring-rush horsetail ferns and, farther
upstream, soaproot. |
| CB 5, 64 |
Iza pounded the soaproot with water in a saucerlike depression of a
large flattish rock near the stream. The root sudsed into a rich, saponin-filled
lather. (...) and lathered her from head to foot, including her stringy,
matted hair. |
| CB 24, 390 |
Ayla and Uba had scouted the region near the cave shortly after they
arrived to find the cleansing plants necessary to purify themselves in
case one of them was called upon to participate in the ceremony.
Ayla was nervous as she raced to dig up soaproot, horsetail fern, and
red-rooted pigweed, and her stomach was a bundle of knots while she waited
anxiously for boiling water from one of the cooking fires to extract the
insecticidal element from the fern. |
| VH 5, 78 |
Just around the bend she had found soaproot growing, and went to pull
some roots. (...) She rinsed the roots, scooped water into a depression,
and pounded the soaproot to release the rich sudsy saponin. When she had
worked up the foam, she wetted her hair, rubbed it in, then washed the
rest of her body and dove into the water to rinse. |
| VH 21, 357-358 |
She went downstream for soaproot. (...) // (...) and in the rock nearby
was a basinlike depression which she used to pound the saponin out of the
soaproots. |
| VH 28, 461 |
"Then I will find some soaproot and purify myself, the way Iza taught
me." (...)
"I'd like a little soaproot myself."
"I'll get some for you," she said.
He was grinning as he walked along the stream behind Ayla, and after she dug the soaproot and went back up to the cave, he flung himself into the water (...) He pounded the soapy foam from the roots, rubbed it on his body, then took off the leather thong and worked it into his hair. Sand usually worked well enough, but soaproot was better. |
| MH 28, 456 |
Ritual Purification
It was too early in the year to find lathering soaproot, and the countryside
was too open for horsetail fern, which grew in shady damp places. She had
to find alternatives to the traditional Clan cleansing agents. |
| PP 7, 95 |
"I'm even going to wash my hair. I saw some soaproot growing downstream.
Are you going to come for a swim?"
"Yes, I will. I may even wash my hair, if you can find enough of that
soaproot for me," Jondalar said (...) |
| PP 7, 96 |
"Oh, there they are," Ayla said, seeing the rather tall, somewhat straggling
plants with light pink flowers and leaves shaped like spear points, that
she had noticed earlier. With her digging stick she quickly loosened several
roots and pulled them out.
On their way back, she searched for a flat, hard stone or piece of
wood, and a rounded stone to crush the soaproot and release the saponin,
which would foam into a light cleansing lather in the water. |
| PP 11, 178 |
"I'm not sorry the clothes got wet," Ayla said, arranging a loincloth.
"I found some soaproot and washed mine while I was waiting for you." |
| PP 12, 199 |
(...) then she found soapwort and they had bathed and washed their
hair. |
| PP 16, 265 |
Ayla rubbed the saponin-rich flowers between her wet hands until a
foam developed; then she worked it into her hair. The foam from ceanothus
wasn't as rich as soaproot lather, but this was a final washing and
the pale blue petals left a pleasant mild scent. (...) Ayla was sure she'd
be able to find some plant that they could use to wash with, but she was
pleasantly surprised to find both soaproot and ceanothus (...) |
|
Abbreviations |
Editions |
| CB |
The Clan of the Cave Bear |
The page numbers refer to the hardcover editions by Crown Publishers, Inc, New York 1980, 1982, 1985, 1990.
Book 1-3 are the Special Collector's Edition, I don't know if the page numbers differ from those of the 'normal' hardcover editions. |
| VH |
The Valley of Horses |
| MH |
The Mammoth Hunters |
| PP |
The Plains of Passage |
| (...) |
omission |
Copyright |
| ... |
original in text |
All book quotes: © Copyright Jean M. Auel
The format and text contents of this site are the property of the author |
| MGMH |
'A Modern Herbal', by Mrs. M. Grieve |
Comments, suggestions, errors, anything else ... emails are welcome!
|
Author: Linné, Family: caryophyllaceae