Presenti sulla terra sin da tempi preistorici, le orchidacee, hanno da sempre affascinato incuriosito diversi popoli e culture stimolando la creazione di miti e leggende legati all’origine della pianta stessa. Per gli antichi Greci la prima Orchidea nacque dalla metamorfosi di Orchis, giovane bellissimo e assai focoso, figlio di una Ninfa e di un Satiro, punito e dato in pasto a belve feroci per aver osato insidiare una sacerdotessa del dio Dioniso.
Dai resti del giovane gli dei dell’Olimpo, impietositi, fecero spuntare una pianta esile e modesta, antitesi del suo corpo esuberante, ma che nelle radici conservava il ricordo delle parti anatomiche maschili, causa della sua fine (orchis in greco significa testicolo in riferimento alle radici a tubero rotondeggiante di alcune specie).
A partire da questo mito sono nate numerose leggende e credenze popolari che attribuivano alla pianta poteri afrodisiaci e curativi, parti della pianta infatti venivano utilizzate per creare filtri magici o misture curative (il medico e farmacista greco Dioscoride nel trattato ‘De Materia Medica’ scriveva che un uomo, cibandosi di grossi rizomi di orchidea, avrebbe generato un maschio, mentre quelle piccole avrebbero indotto una donna a concepire una femmina).
Anche in tempi più recenti il l’orchidea non ha perso la sua attrattiva e il suo potere ispiratore infatti diversi furono gli artisti e autori a rappresentare questo fiore come simbolo della sensualità e della bellezza.
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Present on earth since prehistoric times, the orchids, have always fascinated intrigued different peoples and cultures, stimulating the creation of myths and legends related to the origin of the plant itself. For the ancient Greeks the first orchid was born from the metamorphosis of Orchis, a young beautiful and very hot, the son of a Nymph and a Satyr, punished and fed to wild beasts for daring to undermine a priestess of the god Dionysus.
From the remains of the young gods of Olympus, pity, did tick a slender and modest plant, antithesis of his exuberant body, but in the roots she kept the memory of the male body parts, because of its end (orchis in greek means testicle in reference the roots Bulb round of some species).
From this myth arose numerous legends and folk beliefs which attributed to the plant aphrodisiacs and healing powers, parts of the plant in fact were used to create magical or healing mixtures filters (your doctor and pharmacist in the Treaty greek Dioscorides 'De Materia Medica' wrote that a man, by eating large orchid rhizomes, would generate a male, while the small ones would have caused a woman to conceive a female).
Even in more recent times the orchid has not lost its appeal and its inspirational power were in fact different artists and authors to represent this flower as a symbol of sensuality and beauty.
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From the remains of the young gods of Olympus, pity, did tick a slender and modest plant, antithesis of his exuberant body, but in the roots she kept the memory of the male body parts, because of its end (orchis in greek means testicle in reference the roots Bulb round of some species).
From this myth arose numerous legends and folk beliefs which attributed to the plant aphrodisiacs and healing powers, parts of the plant in fact were used to create magical or healing mixtures filters (your doctor and pharmacist in the Treaty greek Dioscorides 'De Materia Medica' wrote that a man, by eating large orchid rhizomes, would generate a male, while the small ones would have caused a woman to conceive a female).
Even in more recent times the orchid has not lost its appeal and its inspirational power were in fact different artists and authors to represent this flower as a symbol of sensuality and beauty.
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