Hmm, Hellebore....Hellebore is one of the four classic poisons. The other three are nightshade, hemlock, and aconite. King Attalus III was one of the greatest poison fanciers in all of history, and he had a particular fondness for hellebore.
Pliny described a ritual to harvest the roots of the plant. First, a sword was used to draw a circle around the plant. The collector would then pray to the east for permission to dig up the plant. Finally, the collector would look to see if an eagle was flying nearby, if it was, then it presaged the death of the collector within the year.
In Greek mythology, Melampus, the great seer used this plant as a herb to cure the madness of King Proetus' daughters and other Greek women, who lost their hair and roamed wildly through mountains and desert of Tiryns, thinking themselves to be cows. Melampus and his brother Bias gained a fortune ~two thirds of King Proetus' kingdom~ as a result, becoming the husbands of the princesses.
The ancient Greeks associated it with demons or possession. All species of this flower are toxic. They were used to create poison tip arrows. Strangely, it is said to provide protection and a vase of hellebore brought into a room will drive away an unpleasant atmosphere and replace it with tranquility.
TPBM is all about learning the meanings of plants these days.
:smitten:
(PS, today's is Reeds and it means "a musical voice") I seem to have taken on this daily job as of late but that's okay. I'm learning!
