Rose

The name is derived from the Latin rosa and the Creek rhodon. Cloris, goddess of flowers, crowned the rose as queen of the flowers. Aphrodite presented a rose to her son Eros, god of love. The rose became a symbol of love and desire. Eros gave the rose to Harpocrates, the god of silence, to induce him not to gossip about his mother's amorous indiscretions. Thus the rose also became the emblem of silence and secrecy. In the middle ages a rose was suspended from the ceiling of a council chamber, pledging all present to secrecy,or sub rosa,"under the rose".
The first historical testimony we have of the rose dates back to ancient Mesopotamia, Sargon I, King of the Akkadians (2684-2630 B.C.) brought to UR "vines, figs and rose trees" on his way back from a military expedition beyond the River Tigris.
In Homer's Iliad (ninth century B.C.), Achilles`s shield is decorated with roses. According to Herodotus, the rose was introduced to Greece by the mythical King Midas of Phrygia, who was supposed to have lived in Asia Minor about 300 B.C. Confucius wrote that during his life (551-479 B.C.), the Emperor of China already had in his library six hundred books concerning the culture of Roses. The Chinese of the fifth century B.C. extracted oil of roses from the plants grown in the Emperor's garden. It was only allowed to be used by the nobles and dignitaries of the court; if a commoner were found in possession of even the smallest amount of this oil he was condemned to death.

Egyptian wall paintings and objects representing roses have been found in tombs dating from the fifth century B.C. to Cleopatra`s time. Cleopatra had a passion for everything Roman and her mania for roses was picked up from her allies. The first roses came to Rome from Greece, a few decades before her time.
The rose became an important heraldic symbol. During the "War of the Roses," the House of York was symbolized by a white rose, the House of Lancaster by a red rose.
The first cultivated roses appeared in Asian gardens more than 5,000 years ago. In ancient Mesopotamia, Sargon I, King of the Akkadians (2684-2630 B.C.) brought "vines, figs and rose trees" back from a military expedition beyond the River Tigris
Confucius wrote that during his life (551-479 B.C.), the Emperor of China owned over 600 books about the culture of Roses. The Chinese extracted oil of roses from the plants grown in the Emperor's garden. The oil was only used by nobles and dignitaries of the court. If a commoner were found in possession of even the smallest amount, he was condemned to death!

    Empress Josephine of France started her rose collection at Malmaison in 1804. Within 10 years,in 1814, her garden contained every species of rose then known. In 1829 her garden contained 2,562 different roses. The passion for roses spread from France to the British Isles ,throughout western Europe to America and Australia.
    As for the medicinal properties of roses you could fill a large book with the many prescriptions. One thing we know is that rose hips were used for the prevention of scurvy. Oranges contain 49mgs of vitamin C per 100 g. of pulp, whereas the fruits ( rose hips) of Rosa rugosa contain 2,275 to 6,977 mg. of vitamin C per 100 g. of pulp.
The wild rose is the state flower of Iowa, North Dakota, Georgia and New York.
It is also the official flower of England.