Discovery of Cinchona as Antimalarial, Viceroyalty of Peru, Circa 1630

The empirical discovery of the therapeutic power of Cin chona tree bark in the 17th Century has been one of the most important achievements in the history of medicine in its fight against malaria. Only after 2 centuries, since the isolation of its main alkaloid, quinine, could other important antimalarials, such as chloroquine, be synthe sized, all of which helped to save hundreds of millions of lives. In this historical review, we examine the evidence, accessed from early documentary sources, concerning the discovery of Cinchona and its therapeutic value as an antimalarial during the Viceroyalty of Peru.