The Greeks scattered parsley over graves or planted it on top of them. The boy was renamed Archemorus meaning the Forerunner of Death.
Opheltes died and parsley grew from the child’s blood. It was fabled that a child prince called Opheltes was left unwatched by his nurse and bitten by a snake. However a bit of research later and much more interesting meanings are revealed!įor the Ancient Greeks, Parsley was the most significant herb. It was something really important to our ancestors for helping with the smooth running of death! These days our knowledge is limited to things like aromatherapy oils, rosemary for stress relief and positive medicinal and psychological effects etc. Across different faiths there are rules when it comes to flowers, so a knowledge of the history and meanings is really useful and respectful in our modern world, and makes sense of some traditions!įor most of us the use of herbs and flowers is like a lost language. Flowers and herbs have played an established part in religious rites since at least Ancient Greek and Roman times.
