Why are mandrakes thought to be magical? Beside their amazing medicinal properties (pain relief, sedative, anxiety relief, etc.) and their intoxicating fruits, I think the biggest reason that mandrake roots are thought to be magical is that they take on such humanoid shapes.
In many East Asian mythologies, a non-human being can take on a human form when he/she/it harnesses a great amount of magical powers through thousands of years of practice and meditation. Ginseng, which literally means “human（人）root（參）” in Chinese, bonsai and other trees are said to have absorbed the essences of Heavens and Earth and all the vital elements, and have alchemised those essences into magical powers when they take on shapes of human form.
I often see mandrake being the European counterpart of ginseng, so of course when a root takes on a particularly humanoid shape, I automatically think she is harnessing all the magical powers.
This particular root was dedicated to Hekate… Her crown is actually on the left, a little nub sticking out from the “waist”. Looking at her at this angle, she almost looks like one of those flying nymphs in Dunhuang Buddhist temple paintings.