Spikenard, also called nard, nardin, and muskroot, is a class of aromatic amber-colored essential oil derived from Nardostachys jatamansi , a flowering plant in the honeysuckle family which grows in the Himalayas of Nepal, China, and India. The oil has been used over centuries as a perfume, a traditional medicine, or in religious ceremonies across a wide territory from India to Europe. [1] [2] [3] Historically, the name nard has also referred to essential oils derived from other species including the closely related valerian genus, as well as Spanish lavender; these cheaper, more common plants have been used in perfume-making, and sometimes to adulterate true spikenard.
The name nard is derived from Latin nardus, from Ancient Greek νάρδος (nárdos). This word may ultimately derive either from Sanskrit नलद (nálada 'Indian spikenard'), or from Naarda, an ancient Assyrian city (possibly the modern town of Dohuk, Iraq). [4] The "spike" in the English name refers to the inflorescence or flowering stem of the plant.
Nardostachys jatamansi is a flowering plant of the honeysuckle family that grows in the Himalayas of Nepal, China, and India. In bloom, the plant grows to about 1 meter (3 ft) in height and has small, pink, bell-shaped flowers. It is found at an altitude of about 3,000 to 5,000 m (9,800 to 16,400 ft). Its rhizomes can be crushed and distilled into an intensely aromatic, amber-colored essential oil with a thick consistency.
Nard oil is used as a perfume, an incense, and in Ayurvedic practices. [5] Sesquiterpenes contribute to the major portion of the volatile compounds, [6] with the eponymous jatamansone (also known as (-)-valeranone) being dominant. Many coumarins are also present in the oil. The alkaloid actinidine has been isolated from the oil, and valerenal alongside valerenic acid (formerly called nardal and nardin respectively). [7] Among the other phytochemical products are found in the rhizomes are: nardostachysin, a terpenoid ester; [8] nardostachnol; nardostachnone; jatamansic acid and jatamansinone.
In ancient Rome, nardus was used to flavor wine, and occurs frequently in the recipes of Apicius. [9] [10] During the early Roman empire, nardus was the main ingredient of a perfume (unguentumnardinum). [9]
Pliny's Natural History lists several species of nardus used in making perfume and spiced wine: Indian nard, a stinking nard called 'ozaenitidos' which is not used, a false nard ('pseudo-nard') with which true nard is adulterated, and several herbs local to Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean which are also called nardus, namely Syrian nard, Gallic nard, Cretan nard (also called 'agrion' or 'phun'), field nard (also called 'bacchar'), wild nard (also called 'asaron'), and Celtic nard. Celtic nard is the only species Pliny mentions which he does not describe when listing the species of nard in book 12 of Natural History suggesting it is synonymous with another species, probably with the species Pliny refers to as 'hirculus', a plant Pliny attests to growing in the same region as Gallic nard and which he says is used to adulterate Gallic nard. Both are widely assumed to be cultivars or varieties of Valeriana celtica . [11] [12] [13] [ non-primary source needed ]
Indian nard refers to Nardostachys jatamansi , stinking nard possibly to Allium victorialis , false nard to Lavandula stoechas , Syrian nard to Cymbopogon nardus , Gallic nard to Valeriana celtica , Cretan nard to Valeriana italica (syn. V. dioscoridis, V. tuberosa), and wild nard to Asarum europaeum . Field nard, or 'bacchar', has not been conclusively identified and must not be confused with species now called "baccharises" referring to species native to North America. [11] [12] [13]
Spikenard is mentioned in the Bible as being used for its fragrance.
Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus' feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head.
In the Iberian iconographic tradition of the Catholic Church, the spikenard is used to represent Saint Joseph. [14] The Vatican has said that the coat of arms of Pope Francis includes the spikenard in reference to Saint Joseph. [14] [15] [16]
Nard (Italian nardo ) is also mentioned in the Inferno of Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy :
erba né biado in sua vita non pasce, |
Spikenard is also mentioned as an herb protecting Saint Thecla from wild beasts in the apocryphal text The Acts of Paul and Thecla. [18]
Lavandula is a genus of 47 known species of perennial flowering plants in the mints family, Lamiaceae. It is native to the Old World, primarily found across the drier, warmer regions of mainland Eurasia, with an affinity for maritime breezes.
Valerian is a perennial flowering plant native to Europe and Asia. In the summer when the mature plant may have a height of 1.5 metres, it bears sweetly scented pink or white flowers that attract many fly species, especially hoverflies of the genus Eristalis. It is consumed as food by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species, including the grey pug.
Cedar oil, also known as cedarwood oil, is an essential oil derived from various types of conifers, most in the pine or cypress botanical families. It is produced from the foliage, and sometimes the wood, roots, and stumps left after logging of trees for timber. It has many uses in art, industry, and perfumery, and while the characteristics of oils derived from various species may vary, all have some degree of pesticidal effects.
Nard may refer to:
An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile chemical compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils, aetheroleum, or simply as the oil of the plant from which they were extracted, such as oil of clove. An essential oil is essential in the sense that it contains the essence of the plant's fragrance—the characteristic fragrance of the plant from which it is derived. The term "essential" used here does not mean indispensable or usable by the human body, as with the terms essential amino acid or essential fatty acid, which are so called because they are nutritionally required by a living organism.
Acorus calamus is a species of flowering plant with psychoactive chemicals. It is a tall wetland monocot of the family Acoraceae, in the genus Acorus. Although used in traditional medicine over centuries to treat digestive disorders and pain, there is no clinical evidence for its safety or efficacy – and ingested calamus may be toxic – leading to its commercial ban in the United States.
Sisyrinchium is a large genus of annual to perennial flowering plants in the family Iridaceae. Native to the New World, the species are known as blue-eyed grasses. Although they are not true grasses (Poaceae), they are monocots.
Phytochemistry is the study of phytochemicals, which are chemicals derived from plants. Phytochemists strive to describe the structures of the large number of secondary metabolites found in plants, the functions of these compounds in human and plant biology, and the biosynthesis of these compounds. Plants synthesize phytochemicals for many reasons, including to protect themselves against insect attacks and plant diseases. The compounds found in plants are of many kinds, but most can be grouped into four major biosynthetic classes: alkaloids, phenylpropanoids, polyketides, and terpenoids.
Bdellium is a semi-transparent oleo-gum resin extracted from Commiphora wightii plants, and from Commiphora africana trees growing in sub-saharan Africa. According to Pliny the best quality came from Bactria. Other named sources for the resin are India, Pakistan, Arabia, Media, and Babylon.
Sumbul, also called sumbal or muskroot, is a drug occasionally employed in European medical practice. It consists of the root of Ferula moschata, known formerly by the synonym Ferula sumbul, a tall umbelliferous plant of the 'giant fennel' genus Ferula found primarily in the north of Bokhara in present-day Uzbekistan, although its range apparently extends into Southeastern Siberia : beyond the Amur river.
Mithridate, also known as mithridatium, mithridatum, or mithridaticum, is a semi-mythical remedy with as many as 65 ingredients, used as an antidote for poisoning, and said to have been created by Mithridates VI Eupator of Pontus in the 1st century BC. It was one of the most complex and highly sought-after drugs during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, particularly in Italy and France, where it was in continual use for centuries. An updated recipe called theriac was known well into the 19th century.
Lavandula angustifolia, formerly L. officinalis, is a flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae, native to the Mediterranean. Its common names include lavender, true lavender and English lavender ; also garden lavender, common lavender and narrow-leaved lavender.
Kaempferia galanga, commonly known as kencur, aromatic ginger, sand ginger, cutcherry, is a monocotyledonous plant in the ginger family, and one of four plants called galangal. It is found primarily in open areas in Indonesia, southern China, Taiwan, Cambodia, and India, but is also widely cultivated throughout Southeast Asia.
Nardus is a genus of plants belonging to the grass family, containing the single species Nardus stricta, known as matgrass. It is placed in its own tribe Nardeae within the subfamily Pooideae. The name derives from ancient Greek nardos from the earlier Akkadian lardu. It is not to be confused with spikenard, Nardostachys jatamansi.
Valeriana celtica is a species of plant in the family Caprifoliaceae. It is also known as Alpine valerian and valerian spikenard. It is endemic to the Eastern Alps and to the Graian and Pennine Alps. It grows as a perennial herb 5 to 15 cm (2.0–5.9 in) tall. Along with Valeriana saxatilis and Valeriana elongata, it forms a clade of dioecious plants. Until the 1930s, it was extensively harvested for export to Asia for use in perfumes. The root has been used as a folk remedy as a nerve tonic.
Valeriana jatamansi, formerly known as Valeriana wallichii, is a rhizome herb of the genus Valeriana and the family Valerianaceae also called Indian Valerian or Tagar-Ganthoda, not to be confused with ganthoda, the root of Indian long pepper. It is an herb useful in Ayurvedic medicine used as an analeptic, antispasmodic, carminative, sedative, stimulant, stomachic, and nervine.
Nardostachys is a genus of flowering plant in the honeysuckle family (Caprifoliaceae). Nardostachys jatamansi is the sole species in genus.
The incense offering, a blend of aromatic substances that exhale perfume during combustion, usually consisting of spices and gums burnt as an act of worship, occupied a prominent position in the sacrificial legislation of the ancient Hebrews.
The identity of the plant first described by Carl Linnaeus as Iris florentina remains unclear, as of December 2021. In horticulture, it has been treated as a white-flowered variant of Iris × germanica, under names such as Iris germanica nothovar. florentina, Iris × germanica var. florentina and Iris × germanica 'Florentina'. Iris florentina has also been treated as the correct name for the true species also known as Iris albicansLange.