So many fiction is not associated with any plant as with the queen of flowers. Legends about roses exist in every country, and all of them are associated with the first appearance of this flower in a particular state. But the truth remains the existence of a fragrant plant for more than 25 million years on earth. In a cultivated cultivation, the prickly beauty is more than five thousand years old. Petals of red, yellow, apricot, peach and even black flowers are a unique celebration of the past and present.
History
This flower has been worshiped and chanted since time immemorial. Archaeologists have obtained information about the existence of roses on the Cretan peninsula, where frescoes with this symbol were discovered. Also found are wreaths of roses in Egyptian tombs and silver coins minted in the IV century BC. e.
Legends of roses connect the first appearance of a flower with the gift of Allah to the Persians. In fact, the Chinese put themselves at the origins of the appearance of this fragrant plant. Although some sources nevertheless claim that Persia is the official place for the removal of the queen of flowers from the wild rose.
No matter what the legends and beliefs about the rose, the damask bush, which was brought to Europe from Syria in 1875, is considered the oldest plant variety. The French are called the best specialists in the cultivation of these plants, and the Dutch are the leaders in the supply of flowers of love. The center for the production of rose oil, widely used in perfumes, is Bulgaria.
The advantages of the prickly beauty known to mankind give rise to a bunch of legends attributing the appearance of a flower to his people.
Myths about the origin
A white rose appeared as an offering of Allah to its people. The children of the flora asked the creator to change Lotus, who could not cope with the royal duties. The majestic beauty was immediately nicknamed the Queen of Flowers. Thus arose the legend of the rose - “Flower for Children”.
In India, there is a myth about the appearance of the goddess of plenty and the beautiful Lakshmi from a rosebud. But at the same time, in iconography, the loving mother of the universe of Hindus appears before them on the background of a lotus. Perhaps admirers of the Rosehip genus pushed the importance of the lotus in the eastern religion to the background, attributing the merits of the prickly princess.
The Greeks correlated the appearance of an impressive flower with the goddess of love. According to ancient Greek culture, a rose arose from the foam on the body of Aphrodite when she emerged from the sea. It was she who gave beauty the flower, and Dionysus saturated the rose with a heady aroma, filling the plant with nectar.
The appearance of a red flower
After Aphrodite became the cause of the appearance of a white rose, she adorned her altar and garden with these flowers. The petals of the plant remained “clean” until the sad news. When the news arrived about the wound of Adonis, beloved heart , the goddess immediately rushed to him through the rose garden. Running away in frustrated feelings, Aphrodite did not notice that the thorns of the plant scratched her bare legs, and drops of divine blood dripped on the white petals of the flower. So the plant appeared scarlet shade. Here is such a brief legend about a red rose present in ancient Greek mythology.
In general, the Greeks adorned the wedding bed with pink petals, strewn them with the road along which the victors returned from the war, dressed the brides in wreaths of these flowers with myrtle.
In Rome, the plant was a symbol of courage. The courage was instilled in the soldiers before sending them to combat clashes: instead of a helmet, a wreath of roses was put on.
Emblem of england
For more than thirty years in England the struggle between the two dynasties continued: York and Lancaster. This conflict brought the kingdom of destruction and loss by the feudal aristocracy. Heinrich Tudor, representative of the Lancaster House, won the conflict. The victorious dynasty then ruled England for the next 117 years.
But how are the legends of roses related to the mentioned military conflict of 1455-1485? It turns out that later the disagreement between the dynasties of Lancaster and York was called the "War of the Scarlet and White Rose." The reason for this was the symbols of the warring forces. So, the white flower was chosen as the emblem of the loser, as it later became known, by the York party. The scarlet rose became a contrasting contrast to the symbol of the enemy. It is said that English breeders even bred Lancaster York bush, on which both white and red flowers grow.
Halfetti
Legends of black roses are associated with the Turkish city of Halfeti, thanks to him they received an identical name. The flower looks no different from a classic rose, the only sign of uniqueness is the alarming coal-black shade of the petals.
The plant received an unnatural color due to the composition of the soil on which it grows. The reason for this is the level of acidity that rises in the summer, just at the time of flowering Halfeta.
Black roses began to be attributed to an endangered species after the flooding of the old Halfeti by the waters of the Euphrates. Residents began to transplant flowers to a new place, where they were forced to move due to the flood, but the adaptation of the bush was difficult.
Florists agree that it is impossible to achieve a black shade of rose petals in a natural way, since they do not have blue pigment. The view of the Halfeti shrub is a way to attract tourists. In fact, the darkest rose has a burgundy purple hue.
French legend
There is a sad legend that tells about Joel, a girl with leukemia. She lived in France in the 20th century and loved communicating with roses. The disease defeated young Joel at the age of 10 years. A few days before her death, she, talking with her mother, said that if she dies, she wants to become a rose, which will belong to her parents.
Poor Joel’s mother didn’t ignore the baby’s last wish and after the daughter’s death turned to French rose breeders with a request to bring out a new flower and name it after her girl. The new variety was distributed and put on sale, and the money from the sale was directed to the fight against cancer.
Perhaps the legend told about the rose for children with leukemia is a myth, but still I want to believe him. To believe that a beautiful plant saves not only hearts broken by love, but also helps to bring back to life people who have lost hope of a normal existence.
Rosa: stories, legends from Russia
The first mention of an angel flower brought into the territory of Russia, and later of Tsarist Russia, dates from the 17th century. The rose became widespread under Catherine II. Proof of this is the story of the sentry guarding the territory for more than 50 years, five hundred steps from the eastern pavilion, where the flower used to grow.
General Klinger, who accompanied Empress Maria Fyodorovna, the mother of Emperor Nicholas I, to Tsarskoye Selo, noticed a guard in the garden. He was surprised by the place of the sentry. From a security point of view, the General did not see any sense in him. When Klinger got to the bottom of the truth, it became known that since the reign of Catherine II there was an order to protect the mentioned place in the garden after the appearance of a blooming rose. The Empress liked the flower so much that she took care of its integrity in such an “armed way”.
Beliefs about roses
Superstitious people are always looking for the cause of the events. Roses can also serve as a predictor of any circumstances in fate. However, do not take signs seriously, because the person himself is the creator of his future.
- A bouquet of roses in the house promises prosperity, wealth and happiness.
- A prick from a prickly beauty spells a disappointment in a loved one or a conflict.
- It is considered a sign of good luck to see an open flower bud in early June.
- Insincere is the desire to give a bouquet if the next day the petals of the gift begin to fall off.
- It is a known truth that yellow roses (and any other flowers of this shade) should not be presented to loved ones, because they are the messengers of separation.
- Legends about roses reflect the widespread use of this flower in funeral rituals among the ancient Greeks and Romans: they decorated graves and then scattered on the ground. Hence the belief that it’s better to refrain from strewing young rose petals on the road.
Symbolism
The prickly beauty is also used as a symbol in various religions and cultures. So, in India it is a sign of the divine word. In Christianity, a red rose is a sign of Christ's suffering, white is a sign of the Virgin Mary. In the Virgin, the symbol is a white flower without thorns, which represents the liberation from sins.
In Western religion, the rose bush has the same meaning as the lotus in the East. In Kabbalah, this flower is considered the mystical center and the heart of creation.
In modern society, a rose is a sign of attention and an attribute of sympathy.