[The way for carrying medicine and its containers (X): "patent medicine and carrying it in the Edo Period"].

A patent medicine and prescribed one coexisted in the Edo period, as they do in these days. A patent medicine was generally taken for curing slight illness and a prescribed one was used for curing serious one. As the former was more useful for carrying and taking it than the latter, a patent medicine was spread not only in town, but also in the country. Manufacturers of a patent medicine were eager to develop new markets for it and they were also active to innovate new preparations which were convenient for taking it and carrying it.