Iris, Medicinal Plant, 1737
A Curious Herbal, Plate 69. Iris, or "Garden flower-de-luce" as Blackwell calls it, was used to induce sneezing. The juice of the root, "when snuff'd up the nostrils, purges the head and clears the brain of thin, serous, phlegmatic humors." Iris is a genus of 260-300 species of flowering plants with showy flowers. It takes its name from the Greek word for a rainbow, referring to the wide variety of flower colors found among the many species. Rhizomes of the German Iris and Sweet Iris are traded as orris root and are used in perfume and medicine, though more common in ancient times than today. Today Iris essential oil from flowers are sometimes used in aromatherapy as sedative medicines. Elizabeth Blackwell (1707-1758) was a famed Scottish illustrator and author who was best known as both the artist and engraver for the plates of "A Curious Herbal" (1737).
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