（《唐本草》）
【释名】白沙糖。
恭曰∶石蜜即乳糖也，与虫部石蜜同名。
时珍曰∶按∶万震《凉州异物志》云∶石蜜非石类，假石之名也。实乃甘蔗汁煎而曝之，
则凝如石而体甚轻，故谓之石蜜也。
【集解】志约曰∶石蜜出益州及西戎，煎炼沙糖为之，可作饼块，黄白色。
恭曰∶石蜜用水、牛乳、米粉和煎成块，作饼坚重。西戎来者佳，江左亦有，殆胜于蜀。
诜曰∶自蜀中、波斯来者良。东吴亦有，不及两处者。皆煎蔗汁、牛乳，则易细白耳。
宗 曰∶石蜜，川、浙者最佳，其味浓，他处皆次之，煎炼以型象物，达京师。至夏月
及久阴雨，多自消化。土人先以竹叶及纸裹包，外用石夹埋之，不得见风，遂可免。今人谓
之乳糖。其作饼黄白色者，谓之捻糖，易消化，入药至少。
时珍曰∶石蜜，即白沙糖也。凝结作饼块如石者为石蜜，轻白如霜者为糖霜，坚白如冰
者为冰糖，皆一物有精粗之异也。以白糖煎化，模印成人物狮象之形者为飨糖，《后汉书注》
所谓猊糖是也。以石蜜和诸果仁，及橙橘皮、缩砂、薄荷之类，作成饼块者，为糖缠。以石
蜜和牛乳、酥酪作成饼块者，为乳糖。皆一物数变也。《唐本草》明言石蜜煎沙糖为之，而
诸注皆以乳糖即为石蜜，殊欠分明。按∶王灼《糖霜谱》云∶古者惟饮蔗浆，其后煎为蔗饧，
又曝为石蜜，唐初以蔗为酒。而糖霜则自大历间有邹和尚者，来住蜀之遂宁伞山，始传造法。
故甘蔗所在植之，独有福建、四明、番禺、广汉、遂宁有冰糖，他处皆颗碎、色浅、味薄。
惟竹蔗绿嫩味浓，作霜最佳，西蔗次之。凡霜一瓮，其中品色亦自不同。惟叠如假山者为上，
团枝次之，瓮鉴次之，小颗块又次之，沙脚为下；紫色及如水晶色者为上，深琥珀色次之，
浅黄又次之，浅白为下。
【气味】甘，寒，冷利，无毒。
【主治】心腹热胀，口干渴（《唐本》）。治目中热膜，明目。和枣肉、巨胜末为丸噙之，
润肺气，助五脏，生津（孟诜）。润心肺燥热，治嗽消痰，解酒和中，助
珍）。
【发明】震亨曰∶石蜜甘喜入脾，食多则害必生于脾。西北地高多燥，得之有益；东北
地下多湿，得之未有不病者，亦兼气之浓薄不同耳。
时珍曰∶石蜜、糖霜、冰糖，比之紫沙糖性稍平，功用相同，入药胜之。然不冷利，若
久食则助热、损齿、生虫之害同也。
(From *Tang Bencao*)
[Names] White sand sugar.
Su Gong stated: Shi Mi (Rock Sugar) is the same as Niu Nai Tang (Milk Sugar), sharing the name with the "Shi Mi" found in the Insect section.
Li Shizhen stated: According to research, Wan Zhen recorded in *Liangzhou Yiwu Zhi* that Shi Mi (Rock Sugar) does not belong to the stone category; it merely borrows the name "stone." It is actually made by boiling sugarcane juice and exposing it to the sun. It solidifies like a stone but is very light in texture, hence the name Shi Mi (Rock Sugar).
[Collected Explanations] Meng Zhiyue stated: Shi Mi (Rock Sugar) originates from Yizhou and the Western Regions. It is refined from Sha Tang (Sand Sugar) and can be formed into cake blocks, appearing yellowish-white.
Su Gong stated: Shi Mi (Rock Sugar) is made by mixing water, cow's milk, and rice flour, then boiling and forming blocks into cakes that are hard and heavy. Those from the Western Regions are superior. There is also production in Jiangzuo, which is arguably better than that from Shu.
Meng Shen stated: Those coming from Shu and Persia are of good quality. Those from Eastern Wu exist but are inferior to the previous two. All are refined from sugarcane juice and cow's milk, resulting in a finer, whiter product.
Chen Cheng stated: Shi Mi (Rock Sugar) from Sichuan and Zhejiang is the best, with a rich flavor; those from other places are inferior. It is refined using molds to imitate various shapes and transported to the capital. During summer and prolonged rainy periods, it tends to melt spontaneously. Locals first wrap it in bamboo leaves and paper, then bury it between stone slabs, keeping it away from wind, thus preventing melting. People now call it Niu Nai Tang (Milk Sugar). The kind made into cakes that are yellowish-white is called Nian Tang (Kneaded Sugar), which is easy to digest and rarely used in medicine.
Li Shizhen stated: Shi Mi (Rock Sugar) is essentially Bai Sha Tang (White Sand Sugar). The variety that solidifies into cake blocks resembling stone is called Shi Mi (Rock Sugar); the light and white-as-frost variety is called Tang Shuang (Sugar Frost); the hard and white-as-ice variety is called Bing Tang (Ice Sugar). These are all variations of the same substance with differences in refinement. When white sugar is melted and molded into shapes of humans, lions, or elephants, it is called Xiang Tang (Offering Sugar), which corresponds to the Ni Tang mentioned in the annotations of *Hou Hanshu*. When Shi Mi (Rock Sugar) is mixed with various nuts, orange/tangerine peel, Amomum villosum, mint, etc., and formed into cakes, it is called Tang Chan (Sugar Entanglement). When Shi Mi (Rock Sugar) is mixed with cow's milk and butter/cheese to form cakes, it is called Niu Nai Tang (Milk Sugar). These are all multiple transformations of one substance. *Tang Bencao* explicitly states that Shi Mi (Rock Sugar) is made by refining Sha Tang (Sand Sugar), whereas various annotations equate Niu Nai Tang (Milk Sugar) directly with Shi Mi (Rock Sugar), which is particularly unclear. According to Wang Zhuo's *Tangshuang Pu*, in ancient times, only sugarcane juice was drunk. Later, it was boiled into sugarcane maltose, then dried into Shi Mi (Rock Sugar). In the early Tang Dynasty, wine was made from sugarcane. The method for making Tang Shuang (Sugar Frost) was transmitted starting from the Dali era when Monk Zou came to reside on Sanshan in Suining, Shu. Therefore, although sugarcane is planted everywhere, only Fujian, Siming, Panyu, Guanghan, and Suining produce Bing Tang (Ice Sugar); elsewhere, the crystals are broken, the color is pale, and the flavor is weak. Only green, tender Zhuzhe (Bamboo Cane) with a strong flavor is best for making frost; Xizhe (Western Cane) is second. For every jar of sugar frost produced, the grades vary. The tiered structure resembling artificial hills is the highest grade; cluster branches are second; jar-mirror shape is third; small granular chunks are fourth; and sand residue is the lowest. Purple and crystal-clear colors are the highest grade; deep amber is second; light yellow is third; and light white is the lowest.
[Aroma and Flavor] Sweet, cold, cooling and purgative, non-toxic.
[Therapeutic Actions] Treats heat distension in the heart and abdomen, dry mouth and thirst (*Tang Bencao*). Treats hot membranes in the eyes and brightens vision. Mixed with jujube flesh and Sesamum indicum powder to form pills for holding in the mouth, it moistens lung qi, assists the five zang organs, and generates body fluids (Meng Shen). Moistens dryness-heat in the lungs and heart, treats coughs and eliminates phlegm, resolves alcohol toxicity, harmonizes the middle jiao, and aids nourishment.
[Elucidation] Zhu Zhenheng stated: Shi Mi (Rock Sugar) is sweet and tends to enter the Spleen meridian; excessive consumption harms the Spleen. In the northwest, where the terrain is high and dry, it is beneficial; in the northeast, where the terrain is low and damp, consumption invariably leads to disease, due to differences in climate density.
Li Shizhen stated: Compared to Zi Sha Tang (Purple Sand Sugar), Shi Mi (Rock Sugar), Tang Shuang (Sugar Frost), and Bing Tang (Ice Sugar) have slightly milder properties but identical functions, and they are superior for medicinal use. However, unlike Zi Sha Tang, they are not cooling and purgative. Long-term consumption yields the same harmful effects of promoting heat, damaging teeth, and causing tooth decay.