[An Archaeologist’s Guide to British Species] #87: Chalice-Moss

In 2024, I am continuing to blog an A-Z compendium of human interactions with species in the British landscape. A list of references for information used in this series can be found here. An index of species covered so far can be found here.

Chalice-Moss

Cladonia chlorophaea (Floerke ex Sommerfeldt) Sprengel sensu lato

Also known as cup-moss, Our Lady’s chalice, pixie cups

Cladonia chlorophaea by aarongunnar (CC-BY 4.0)

Not, in fact, a moss, but a group of species of lichen which grow on soil and rocks on shaded banks amongst moss. They resemble small greyish green cups. According to David Allen and Gabrielle Hatfield’s authoritative Medicinal Plants in Folk Tradition, they have been used until relatively recently in Wales as a remedy for whooping cough. In Waterford, Ireland, the plant had the same use when boiled in milk.