Mediterranean cuisine doesn’t taste the same without rosemary. It makes something as simple as a roast potato taste amazing. People also used it to preserve foods.
And there’s a lot of lore surrounding it. Like its cousin, thyme, rosemary has a lot of non-food use. Just think of Shakespeare: Ophelia in Hamlet distributes flowers and herbs, including rosemary. With it she wanted to say:
“There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance. Pray you, love, remember!”
There’s also a rosemary theme in Romeo and Juliet. Juliet has just committed suicide and rosemary was placed on Juliet’s body for her burial:
“Dry up your tears, and stick your Rosemary on this fair corse.”
Rosemary’s use in medicine and religious ritual reaches further back than Shakespeare. The ancient Egyptians, Greek, and Romans, revered it as it really did its part in their beauty regimen.
Rosemary
Some people think rosemary is a spice. But it’s a herb belonging to the family of f the sage family (Lamiaceae) which includes many other economically important herbs such as mint and lavender. Until 2017, its scientific name was Rosmarinus officinalis. Now rosemary goes by Salvia rosmarinus, although you’ll encounter both.
The herb rosemary is a woody, evergreen shrub with aromatic needle-like leaves. It’s native to the Mediterranean region. It can grow as tall as 1.5 m. In temperate climates, rosemary blooms in spring and summer. It has white, pink purple, and deep blue flowers.
Many people grow rosemary in gardens and in kitchen gardens. They’re both beautiful to look and spice up poultry and other dishes.
The name rosemary comes from ros marinus (Latin for “dew of the sea”).
Lore
If you know that rosemary’s being cultivated for over 5’000 years, you understand why it’s steeped in legend, myths, folklore, AND, was revered as a medicinal plant.
Dried sprigs of rosemary were used in the burial rites of the Egyptians.
In Greek mythology, the goddess Aphrodite was draped in rosemary when she rose from the sea. It’s also from Greek students that the rosemary came to be THE herb for studying. They believed it enhances memory and brain function. Hence they wore it in their hair or massaged its oil on their foreheads or temples when studying for exams. Even better, if you had any kind of heart problems, you’d get a concoction of rotten milk, honey, alcohol, and rosemary… frankly, it doesn’t sound very appealing…
Romans also had their lore about rosemary. For example, if rosemary did NOT grow in your garden for whatever reason, your neighbours would get suspicious of you, thinking rosemary only grows in the garden of the “right” people.
For both the Greeks and the Romans, rosemary was something like a cure-all. They used it as
- stimulant
- headache and joint pain relief
- improve brain function and memory
- reduce anxiety,
- prevent nightmares when placed under a pillow
- Insect repellent
It was long believed that rosemary could be used to find your other half since it was the “clothing” of the goddess Aphrodite.
For a very long time, rosemary was a plant that draws the right people (and spirits) as well as wards off evil. It was believed to banish witches when grown in the garden. But somehow that reversed and by the 16th century, people ripped rosemary from their gardens.
The most persistent lore and use are that rosemary enhances memory. From students in Ancient Greece to Shakespeare and even now:
“Rosemary is for remembrance…”
Content and properties
It’s not all just magic, myths, and legends. Recent research indeed suggests that smelling rosemary can help you remember to do things.
Rosemary contains not only many phytochemicals but also a very large number of essential oils, with the main one being:
Alpha pinene is known as an anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial.
Camphene occurs in conifer trees, nutmeg, camphor oil, cypress oil, the cannabis plant, and of course rosemary. It smells strongly of camphor oil and mothballs. It has antiviral, antifungal, and pain relieving qualities.
Camphor has a strong aroma and is known to help ease skin irritation
Cineole is also known as eucalyptol and acts as an analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant.
Apart from the essential oils, rosemary contains hundreds of different phytochemicals including
rosmarinic acid
ursolic acid
carnosic acid
carnosol
All of which are potent antioxidants. When you see “rosemary extracts” or “extracts of rosemary” on the ingredient list of food and nonfood products, it means carnosic acid and carnosol were added as antioxidant preservatives.
When you look at rosemary nutrient profiles, you’ll see it’s also a source of vitamin A, B complex, C, iron, and calcium.
What can rosemary do for your skin
First off, there’s rosemary oil, rosemary leaf extract, and rosemary water. Rosemary oil is an essential oil. It’s obtained by steam-distilling the tops of the rosemary plant including flowers and needles.
Rosemary leaf extract is what the cosmetic brand use on industrial scale. Rosemary water you can also make it at home: you need to steep rosemary needles (the leaves) for several hours.
Rosemary water and leaf extract are more gentle than rosemary essential and you don’t need to be as cautious with them – like always diluting them and checking any safety guidelines.
The nutrient profile of rosemary means it goes way beyond just the fragrance. With vitamins A and C, as well as rosmarinic, ursolic, carnosic acid, and carnosol, rosemary prevents environmental and UV stressors from harming your skin cells. This means it protects and maintains your skin health. Or in other words, it encourages tighter, firmer skin and you get less photodamage (think dark spots).
Balance skin
As a natural astringent, rosemary removes excess oil and purifies your skin but without being harsh and drying. It aids your skin in balancing sebum production.
Fight spots
Being antifungal, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory at the same time means rosemary fights acne causing bacteria, and other microbes. It hinders the growth of microorganisms such as fungi, bacteria, or viruses at the same reduces redness and swelling. This is also good for sensitive skin.
Boost circulation
If you got puffy eyes or want to minimise the appearance of cellulite, rosemary’s diuretic properties can help drive out fluids of tissues. Since it also improves blood flow, it clears away toxins and excess water. With improved circulation, blood gets pumped to all veins big and small, helping to supply nutrients and flush away waste.
How to use it
If you’re pressed for time, then you might get the most out of rosemary oil, although you must exercise caution and always dilute it.
You can also make your own rosemary water. There are 2 ways to make it.
Rosemary water using the essential oil
Bring half a litre of water to boil and add 10-15 drops of rosemary oil. Mix well and let it cool down.
Rosemary water with leaves
Bring half a litre of water to boil a handful of dried or fresh rosemary leaves. Let it steep for 4-5 hours. Let it cool and strain.
Use your rosemary water like you would rice water.
Rosemary water can be used by all skin types. Mind you, it’s always a good idea to first patch test before introducing rosemary to your routine.
