It turns out that “narcotic” is more of a nebulous/vague term and that “controlled substance” (especially when combined with the schedule in which the drug appears) is more well-defined.
The featured picture is of an enormous amount of opium in a warehouse of British East India Company in 1850.
A picture of opium flowers and seeds (Nepal) that I ran into:
Poppy field (India):
Narcotic vs controlled substance
What? How? Wonder. 