New Books Network Kim Embrey, "Coca and the Victorians: From Botanical Curiosity to Regulated Drug, 1835–1912" (Transcript Publishing, 2025)
9 snips
Apr 12, 2026 Kim Embrey, historian of Victorian Britain who studies drug histories, traces how South American coca moved into British medicine and policy. She recounts early explorer reactions, the rise of cocaine in medicine, global cultivation and trade networks, shifting public awareness, and the political turn toward regulation. Multiple short stories illuminate coca’s journey into British modernity.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Sherlock Holmes Sparked a Research Journey
- Kim Embrey became interested in coca through Sherlock Holmes and wondered how Holmes's drug addiction fit his genius image.
- This personal curiosity led Embrey to an Oxford course, shifting her research from opium to a comparative study and finally to a focused book on coca.
Coca's Victorian Timeline Starts With A 1835 Drawing
- Coca was little known in Europe before the 19th century and only entered British awareness via botanical publications in 1835.
- Embrey uses the 1835 drawing in Hooker's Companion as a deliberate start point and links 1912 Hague regulations as the book's end date.
European Views Shifted From Demonization To Economic Use
- European reactions to coca varied widely from demonization to practical acceptance depending on economic utility and observers' biases.
- Spanish taxed and traded coca when miners depended on it, while 19th-century scientists ranged from racist dismissal to praise for coca's stamina benefits.
