Pulsatilla, or PASQUE FLOWER, a species of Anemone (A. pulsatilla), of the natural order Ranunculaceæ. The species is a perennial herb with doubly pinnatifid or doubly trifid leaves, and a simple one-flowered scape.
It is narcotic, acrid, and poisonous. The pulsatilla is a native of many parts of Europe, and of chalky pastures in several parts of England. It has widely bell-shaped bluish-purple flowers. Other species of Anemone have similar properties, A. pratensis and A. patens, the former a native of Europe generally, the latter of Siberia. They all emit, when bruised, a pungent smell, and contain, as their principal constituent, a peculiar pungent essential oil, which, in combination with Anemonic Acid, forms an acrid and very inflammable substance called Anemonine or Pulsatilla Camphor, and is sometimes used in medicine. Pulsatilla is a favourite medicine of the homœopathists. Easter eggs are coloured purple in some places with the petals of the pasque flower.