23 Medieval Uses for Rosemary

In the Middle Ages, Rosemary was considered a wonder plant, which could be used to treat many illnesses and keep you healthy. One 14th century writer found 23 uses for it, including keeping your hair beautiful and preventing nightmares!

This beautiful plant with its blue flowers is native to the Mediterranean region and has a long history dating back to mythological stories. The Greek goddess Aphrodite was said to be wrapped in Rosemary when she first emerged from the sea, while the name comes a story that the Virgin Mary had once spread a blue cloak over a white-blossomed bush, which turned its flowers blue. Writers dating back to ancient times praised the plant for its medical uses, and medieval brides would wear a Rosemary wreath.

A list of its uses can be found in the Zibaldone da Canal, an early fourteenth-century book by a Venetian merchant. Although he says that there 25 uses for rosemary, the text only includes 23, but they offer a fascinating look at what medieval people believed were the beneficial aspects of plant.

These are the virtues of Rosemary, which is very good for all illnesses; Rosemary has 25 powers, and all are good.

Medievalists

How Sniffing Rosemary Could Boost Your Brain Power

Sniffing rosemary could boost your brain power, scientists have suggested.

Tests show that cognitive performance improves when a compound in the herb’s oil – 1, 8-cineole – is absorbed into blood. Biochemists at the University of Northumbria now want to see how the ingredient might affect our brains.

Rosemary has a long history as a traditional remedy with such widespread uses as a hair rinse and a cat repellent.

It has long been thought to boost brain power, so scientists were not totally surprised that respondents performed better in tests. However, they were shocked when they realized the rosemary oil has an effect on the blood, it was reported in the Therapeutic Advances in Psychopharmacology journal.

Dr Mark Moss said: ‘We were not surprised by the improvement in cognitive performance following exposure to rosemary aroma as this has been demonstrated previously. ‘What excited us was the demonstration that performance was linked to plasma levels of 1,8-cineole following exposure.'

Tests on 20 people showed the natural compound was absorbed through the nose and into the blood plasma. For Dr Moss, this means there is a more traditional biochemical explanation for the increased cognitive performances previously demonstrated.

DailyMail