A History of Lavender
Lavender has been a favourite herb for centuries. The historic use and recognition of lavender is almost as old the history of man.
As a herb, lavender has been in documented use for over 2,500 years.
In ancient times lavender was used for mummification and perfume by the Egyptian’s, Phoenicians, and peoples of Arabia. The Greeks and the Romans bathed in lavender scented water and it was from the Latin word “lavo” meaning “to wash” that the herb took it’s name.
Perhaps first domesticated by the Arabians, lavender spread across Europe from Greece. Around 600 BC lavender may have come from the Greek Hyeres Islands into France and is now common in France, Spain, Italy and England.
The ‘English’ lavender varieties were not locally developed in England but rather introduced in the 1600s right around the time the first lavender plants were making their way to the Americas.
Queen Elizabeth I of England valued lavender as a conserve and a perfume. It has been said that she commanded that the royal table should never be without conserve of lavender and she issued orders to her gardeners that fresh lavender flowers should be available all year round! She also drank an abundance of Lavender tea to help ease her migraines and used it as a body perfume
Queen Victoria of England is most notable for making Lavender popular across England and it could be found, in one form or another, in every one of her rooms, as she used it to
- wash floors and furniture,
- freshen the air,
- and had it strewn among the linens.
During the First World War, in France nurses bathed soldiers’ wounds with lavender washes. To this day, the French continue to send baby lamb to graze in fields of lavender, so their meat will be tender and fragrant.
There are around 39 species of Lavender with over 400 varieties of these species. Lavendula angustifolia the English Lavender is mostly used For Health and Beauty .
The Lavender of nostalgia, of the sweet memories of our grandmothers, when people had time stop to smell a flower, and indulge in its beauty, returns to Platres, in a collaborative effort of Platres Community Council, and all stakeholders, to make Platres become famous again for its beautiful Lavender that adorned houses, mansions, and alleys
For the last three years there have been considerable efforts and capacity building to Brand Platres as the Lavender resort , and this is consistent with the history of the place, its authenticity with the gifts that nature generously endows in Platres, and Lavender was the dominant plant of Platres, but also with the fact that the resort is known as the resort of Kings and nobility who spent their summers here, like prince George of England, Princess Mary, King Farouq and other noble people, and the lavender is considered the Queen of herbs for healing properties , the colour and the wonderful beauty.
Join us on Saturday & Sunday 7th & 8th of July 2018 at Platres Cultural Center & surrounding areas for a Lavender Celebration with workshops, live distillation, music and dances, tastings, Lavender Market with beauty products, arts and crafts.
More information can be found on the Troodos Network Facebook Page:
