Complete Compendium of Materia Medica, Volume 120 original: 本草全書, Běncǎo Quánshū; a comprehensive collection of pharmaceutical knowledge

This plant is found among the gardens and fencerows of Raozhou modern-day Poyang County in Jiangxi Province. It grows as a creeping vine with slender stems. Its leaves are elongated, rounded at the base—resembling the shape of a horse's hoof—and tapering to a sharp point at the tip.

It produces small, five-petaled purple flowers that grow in dense clusters, bearing a striking resemblance to those of the Goji 枸杞 (gǒuqǐ): The Wolfberry (Lycium chinense); its small, bell-shaped purple flowers are a frequent point of comparison in historical botanical descriptions.

According to the Illustrated Classic of the Song Dynasty original: 宋圖經, Sòng Tújīng; referring to the Tujing Bencao (1061 AD), a landmark work by Su Song that first standardized botanical illustrations in China, the flowers of the Aristolochia 馬兜鈴 (mǎdōulíng): Aristolochia debilis, known as Birthwort or Dutchman's Pipe; the name literally means "horse-hanging-bell," describing the shape of its seed pods are said to be like those of the Goji.

Nowadays, the name Aristolochia is applied to many different plants; generally, any vine with round fruits that grow in clusters is given this name. Could this plant perhaps be a specific variety of Aristolochia characterized by its Goji-like flowers?