Horse Bone, a name in traditional Chinese medicine. It refers to the bones of the horse (Equus caballus orientalis Noack) of the Equidae family. Horses are raised throughout the country. It has the effects of refreshing the mind, detoxifying, and promoting the healing of sores. It is primarily used to treat drowsiness, scalp sores, ear sores, leg sores, genital sores, and carbuncles.
Horse Bone
Horse Bone, a name in traditional Chinese medicine. It refers to the bones of the horse (Equus caballus orientalis Noack) of the Equidae family. Horses are raised throughout the country. It has the effects of refreshing the mind, detoxifying, and promoting the healing of sores. It is primarily used to treat drowsiness, scalp sores, ear sores, leg sores, genital sores, and carbuncles.
Chinese Name : 马骨
Latin Name : Equus caballus orientalis Noack
Authentic Producing Area : Nationwide
Nature, Flavor & Meridian Tropism : Sweet in taste, slightly cold in nature; enters the Spleen and Kidney meridians
Benefits & Efficacy
Benefits
Revives the mind, detoxifies, and promotes wound healing.
Indications
Excessive sleepiness, scalp sores, ear sores, leg sores, genital sores, and carbuncles.
Usage and Dosage
Internal use: Burn to ash, incorporate into pills or powders; take 1–2 g per dose, three times daily. External use: Apply an appropriate amount; burn to ash, grind into a fine powder, and apply as a poultice.
Precautions
*Collected Notes on the Classic of Materia Medica*: “Horse bones are harmful to humans and are toxic.”
Relevant Discussions
*The Supplement*: “Skull bone is slightly cold.”
*Introduction to Medicine: Materia Medica*: “Tibia is sweet and cold.”
*Compendium of Materia Medica*: “Skull bone is sweet, slightly cold, and slightly toxic. Tibia is sweet, cold, and non-toxic.”
*The Supplement*: “Skull bone treats excessive sleepiness and promotes wakefulness.”
*Dietary Therapy Materia Medica*: “For children suffering from scalp sores, burn horse bones to ash, mix with vinegar, and apply as a poultice. It also treats sores on the body.”
*Rihua Zi*: “Skull bones treat excessive sleepiness; use them as a pillow. Burn them to ash and apply to sores on the head and ears for excellent results.”
*Introduction to Medicine: Materia Medica*: “The tibia can be used in place of Scutellaria baicalensis and Coptis chinensis to treat phlegm-fire disorders; it is used for those with deficient middle qi.”
*Compendium of Materia Medica*: “To treat malignant malaria: mix the ash with oil and apply it to children’s ear sores, scalp sores, genital sores, and abscesses with exudate that feel like a burning sensation. Apply it to the nipples of nursing infants to stop nighttime crying.” “The tibia, when calcined to preserve its nature, reduces yin fire.”
Applications
Related Compatibility
1. To treat excessive sleepiness: Take one fangcun bi of powdered horse skull ash with water, three times a day and once at night. (*Formulas from the Elbow-Room*)
2. To treat excessive sleepiness caused by gallbladder heat: One liang of horse skull ash, one liang of iron powder, half a liang of cinnabar (ground and washed with water), and half a fen of borneol.Grind the above ingredients together until uniform, mix with refined honey to form pills the size of a paulownia seed. Take five pills each time, washed down with warm bamboo leaf decoction, after meals. (*Shenghui Fang*)
3. For treating ear sores in children: Burn horse bone to ash and apply as a poultice mixed with sesame oil. (*Hua Tuo’s Secret Transmission of Divine Medicine*)
4. For treating leg ulcers that have been festering for three to four years: Burn and grind horse tooth and cheekbone; first sift through an earthen pit, then wash several times with urine, and apply the mixture. (*Compendium of Materia Medica*)
5. For treating incessant night crying in children: Take horse bone, burn it to ash, apply the ash to the breast, and let the child suckle. (*Essential Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold*)
Processing & Preparation
Harvesting & Processing
After slaughter, remove the skin, internal organs, and meat, retaining only the bones, which should be air-dried.
Crude Drug Identification
Botanical Information
Morphological Characteristics
Horse: Large in stature, with well-developed bones and muscles; strong limbs and a powerful neck. Height ranges from 1.27 to 1.60 m, and weight from 225 to 773 kg. There is a significant difference in size between males and females. The horse’s head and face are narrow and elongated; the ears are small, pointed, and erect. The nose is broad, and the eyes are large. A long mane of hair runs from the top of the head along the back of the neck to the shoulder blades.The long hair hanging down from between the ears toward the forehead is called the frontal mane. The rest of the body is covered with short, even hair, and the tail also has long mane hair. There are many horse breeds in China, including the Mongolian, Hequ, Ili, Sanhe, and Heihe breeds. Depending on the breed, body size and coat color vary. The main coat colors include gray, piebald, black, and chestnut.
Distribution Area
Horses are raised throughout the country.